Trojan alert
Security software company F-Secure today issued an alert for a particularly nasty little ransom Trojan doing the rounds that aims to part you and your money.
When the W32/DatCrypt Trojan infects a computer, it makes it seem as if some files, such as Microsoft Office documents, video, music and image files have been ‘corrupted’, when the files have actually been encrypted by DatCrypt.
The Trojan then creates what appears to be an authentic message from Windows, advising the user to download and execute the ‘recommended file repair software’ called Data Doctor 2010.
Only after purchasing the ransomware for $89.95 is the user granted access to their own files.
You can read more about this Trojan and view screenshots of its manifestation here.
Gail Lipscombe has worked for some of Australia's hottest tech magazines for over 10 years. In her blog, she focuses on demystifying technology, gadgets and the web for average consumers.