Module 6-3

What is ransomware? Which of the 10 computer ethics commandments is/are violated by ransomware?

According to:  http://www.scambusters.org/ransomware.html

     Just like thieves kidnap people and then demand a ransom to return them unharmed, ransomware is an extortion scheme whereby thieves hijack the victim's computer files and then demand a ransom so the victim can have them back in their original condition.

More specifically, malicious code is used to seize control of the victim's computer and hijack the computer files, and the files are then encrypted by this malicious code. So, all of a sudden, a user's computer files are in a format that is not readable by humans!  

     This can be very disconcerting, to say the least.

     The scammer then demands payment in exchange for the decryption key.

     The amount of ransom can vary quite dramatically. Scammers who ask for small ransoms of $10 have generally been much more successful than thieves who ask for several hundred dollars.

Payment is often demanded through some type of online currency, such as Webmoney or eGold, although wiring money via Western Union is not uncommon.

Ransom.A is one program that claims it will destroy one computer file every 30 minutes until the victim pays the ransom. (In this case, however, Ransom.A doesn't actually delete or encrypt anything -- it's a hoax. Nonetheless, it's probably a very effective hoax.

     Another ransomware program, Trojan.Archiveus, is a Trojan horse that password protects files and then asks the user to pay the ransom to get a password that unlocks the files. In this case, the virus writer made the critical error of placing the password in the code.

     Thus, ransomware violates commandment numbers 1,2,4 and 10, this is because ransomware is a form of stealing, harming other people, interfering one’s work, and does not show respect and consideration to the innocent computer users.