• Advertise
  • Submit a Press Release
NewsBTC
Bitcoin & cryptocurrency news today, price & technical analysis
Price & Market
Cap Data from
Nomics Logo
  • News
    • Bitcoin
    • Ethereum
    • Ripple
    • Cardano
    • Tezos
    • EOS
    • Chainlink
    • Sponsored
    • Press Releases
  • Analysis
    • Bitcoin (BTC)
    • Ethereum (ETH)
    • Cardano (ADA)
    • Chainlink (LINK)
    • Litecoin (LTC)
    • Tezos (XTZ)
    • Zcash (ZEC)
    • EOS
    • YearnFinance (YFI)
  • Education
    • Accepting Bitcoin payments
    • Using Bitcoin
    • What is Bitcoin Mining
    • How to Trade Bitcoin
    • How to Buy Bitcoin
    • Digital Currency Exchange
    • Proof of Existence
    • Is Bitcoin legal?
    • Bitcoin Books
  • Trading Course
  • Directory
    • Crypto Businesses
    • Bitcoin Brokers
    • Casinos
    • Sportsbooks
  • TradeeToro
  • Invest BTCTry
  • Join STC ICOBuy
No Result
View All Result
  • News
    • Bitcoin
    • Ethereum
    • Ripple
    • Cardano
    • Tezos
    • EOS
    • Chainlink
    • Sponsored
    • Press Releases
  • Analysis
    • Bitcoin (BTC)
    • Ethereum (ETH)
    • Cardano (ADA)
    • Chainlink (LINK)
    • Litecoin (LTC)
    • Tezos (XTZ)
    • Zcash (ZEC)
    • EOS
    • YearnFinance (YFI)
  • Education
    • Accepting Bitcoin payments
    • Using Bitcoin
    • What is Bitcoin Mining
    • How to Trade Bitcoin
    • How to Buy Bitcoin
    • Digital Currency Exchange
    • Proof of Existence
    • Is Bitcoin legal?
    • Bitcoin Books
  • Trading Course
  • Directory
    • Crypto Businesses
    • Bitcoin Brokers
    • Casinos
    • Sportsbooks
  • TradeeToro
  • Invest BTCTry
  • Join STC ICOBuy
No Result
View All Result
NewsBTC
No Result
View All Result
Price & Market
Cap Data from
Nomics Logo

Cybercrime Firm Warns of Rising Reports of Fake WannaCry Ransomware

newsbtc by newsbtc
3 years ago
in
Reading Time: 3min read
Cybercrime
Advertisement

Cybercrime involving cryptocurrencies is on the rise. Today, the U.K.’s national reporting center for fraud and cyber crime, Action Fraud, has issued warnings about a new phishing campaign using the infamous WannaCry ransomware.

Increase in Ransomware

Action Fraud claimed last Friday that it had already received 300 reports over the previous two days about the scam emails, which attempt to trick readers into believing they have an infected computer. The emails claim that users’ devices are hacked and that files will be deleted unless a fine is paid in Bitcoin. In reality, the emails are just a phishing exercise used to extort money from unknowing victims.

“The WannaCry emails are designed to cause panic and trick you into believing that your computer is infected with WannaCry ransomware,” Action Fraud said in an alert. “In reality the emails are just a phishing exercise to try and extort money. The emails claim that all of your devices were hacked and your files will be deleted unless you pay a fine to the fraudsters in Bitcoin.”

It was last May when reports surrounding WannaCry’s ransomware attacks first appeared. The attacks infected more than 250,000 computers in 150 countries. In the U.K., the attacks were widely publicized, having disrupted over 1/3 of National Health Service (NHS) Trusts as well as 600 independent practitioners, causing the cancellation of an estimated 19,000 appointments and operations.

5 BTC + 300 Free Spins for new players & 15 BTC + 35.000 Free Spins every month, only at mBitcasino. Play Now!

Action Fraud has been called upon several times already to warn U.K. citizens of scams using WannaCry as bait — although most happened in the weeks following the initial outbreak. Other examples of attacks saw BT Group-branded phishing emails that urged users to click to confirm a security update apparently carried out by the communications giant to protect them following the initial attacks. Unfortunately, users were tricked.

“One victim fell for the scam after calling a ‘help’ number advertised on a pop-up window. The window which wouldn’t close said the victim had been affected by WannaCry Ransomware,” Action Fraud said. “The victim granted the fraudsters remote access to their PC after being convinced there wasn’t sufficient anti-virus protection. The fraudsters then installed Windows Malicious Software Removal Tool, which is actually free and took £320 as payment.”

Action Fraud offers several tips on how to protect oneself from attacks from WannaCry and similar ransomware:

“If you receive one of these emails, delete it and report it to us. Do not email the fraudsters or make the payment in Bitcoin. Additionally you should always update your Anti-Virus software and operating systems regularly and follow our advice on how to deal with ransomware.”

Crypto and Cybercrime

As NewsBTC reported in March, the largest category of cybercrime involving cryptocurrency so far in 2018 have been exchange-related (see Coincheck hack), which have accounted for up to 27% of attacks.

The second largest group of victims of cybercrime were regular people and businesses. According to the cybersecurity firm Carbon Black, these made up 21% of the total crimes involving cryptocurrency. The most common method used is ransomware like WannaCry, although there are others, like crypto-jacking (illegal coin mining).

According to Helge Husemann, product manager for internet security firm Malwarebytes, crypto-jacking as a form of cybercrime has been on the rise. Just last year YouTube experienced a threefold increase in illegal coin mining via malware-embedded ads.

He also noted that Showtime, Browsealoud, as well as U.K. government websites, and more, fell victim to illegal mining scams. Some of these went undetected for several months, netting the hackers behind the attacks hefty profits.

Husemann said that on average, Malwarebytes has been blocking eight million malicious mining attempts per day — equating to an astonishing 248 million per month.

“The illicit gains from illegal crypto-mining contribute to financing the criminal ecosystem, costing billions of dollars in losses and disruption of business services from compromised assets.”

Featured image from Shutterstock.
Tags: Action Fraudcryptocurrencycryptojackingcybercrimemalwarephishingransomwarescamwannacry
TweetShare
Nexo Logo
BitStarz Player Lands $2,459,124 Record Win! Could you be next big winner? Win up to $1,000,000 in One Spin at CryptoSlots
newsbtc

newsbtc

Related Posts

PancakeSwap CAKE CAKEUSDT

PancakeSwap Approves “Big Burn” For CAKE, Why It Could Be Massively Bullish

25 mins ago
Stablecoins Are Changing and It’s a Big Deal

Stablecoins Are Changing and It’s a Big Deal

3 hours ago
eqifi

EQIFI Brings DeFi Functionality to the Banking Sector

3 hours ago
bitcoin bulls blood pumping

Bitcoin Loses Important Lifeline That Got Bulls Blood Pumping

4 hours ago
MoonSafe Code Audit Shows Suspicious Anomalies, Scam Confirmed?

MoonSafe Code Audit Shows Suspicious Anomalies, Scam Confirmed?

8 hours ago
student coin

The Student Coin Launchpad ICO, Just Few More Days to Become Part of an Academia-Driven Blockchain Ecosystem

13 hours ago

Premium Partners

Top Brokers

eToro

eToro

Review · Visit
Evolve Markets

Evolve Markets

Review · Visit
Bybit

Bybit

Review · Visit
ArbiSmart

ArbiSmart

Review · Visit
PrimeXBT

PrimeXBT

Review · Visit
Moneta Markets

Moneta Markets

Review · Visit

Top Casinos

BitStarz

BitStarz

Review · Visit
mBit

mBit

Review · Visit
CryptoGames

CryptoGames

Review · Visit
Bonusfinder DE

Bonusfinder DE

Review · Visit
Bspin

Bspin

Review · Visit
Wolf Bet

Wolf Bet

Review · Visit

Top Sportsbooks

1xBit

1xBit

Review · Visit

Top ICOs

Student Coin

Student Coin

Review · Visit

Token sale

Holdefi

Holdefi

Review · Visit

Press Releases

BitMinutes Announces Partnership with GoodDollar, Embracing Opportunity for Social Good

April 22, 2021

Hodlnaut Selects Fireblocks to Secure Assets With Next-Generation MPC Security

April 22, 2021

From Startup to Success Story — Morpheus.Network is Transforming Global Trade With Blockchain

April 22, 2021

Newsletter Signup


ABOUT US

NewsBTC is a cryptocurrency news service that covers bitcoin news today, technical analysis & forecasts for bitcoin price and other altcoins. Here at NewsBTC, we are dedicated to enlightening everyone about bitcoin and other cryptocurrencies.

We cover BTC news related to bitcoin exchanges, bitcoin mining and price forecasts for various cryptocurrencies.

COMPANY

  • Advertising
  • Comments Policy
  • Privacy Center
  • Sitemap
  • About Us
  • Contact

Technical Analysis

  • Bitcoin (BTC)
  • Ethereum (ETH)
  • Ripple (XRP)
  • Chainlink (LINK)
  • Cardano (ADA)
  • Tezos (XTZ)

LINKS

Auto Trading Software ▸

Cryptocurrency news

  • Bitcoin
  • Ethereum
  • Ripple
  • Chainlink
  • Cardano
  • EOS
  • Tezos

© 2020 NewsBTC. All Rights Reserved.

  • News
    • Bitcoin
    • Ethereum
    • Ripple
    • Cardano
    • Tezos
    • EOS
    • Chainlink
    • Sponsored
    • Press Releases
  • Analysis
    • Bitcoin (BTC)
    • Ethereum (ETH)
    • Cardano (ADA)
    • Chainlink (LINK)
    • Litecoin (LTC)
    • Tezos (XTZ)
    • Zcash (ZEC)
    • EOS
    • YearnFinance (YFI)
  • Education
    • Accepting Bitcoin payments
    • Using Bitcoin
    • What is Bitcoin Mining
    • How to Trade Bitcoin
    • How to Buy Bitcoin
    • Digital Currency Exchange
    • Proof of Existence
    • Is Bitcoin legal?
    • Bitcoin Books
  • Trading Course
  • Directory
    • Crypto Businesses
    • Bitcoin Brokers
    • Casinos
    • Sportsbooks
  • Trade
  • Invest BTC
  • Join STC ICO

© 2020 NewsBTC. All Rights Reserved.

This website uses cookies. By continuing to use this website you are giving consent to cookies being used. Visit our Privacy Center or Cookie Policy.