Malware

Two new ransomware threats identified

Two new pieces of file encrypting ransomware have been identified within the past week, one by Symantec and the other by Brad Duncan, security researcher at Rackspace.

Symantec identified Trojan.Cryptolocker.S, which appears to be spreading via social engineering and is targeting users in Australia, a Sunday post indicates. The malware, which uses a Breaking Bad theme, targets a variety of files – including .doc, .jpeg, .mp3, and .zip – and demands up to nearly $800 in Bitcoin to unlock them.

Meanwhile, on Thursday, Duncan observed the Angler Exploit Kit being used to distribute a new variant of TeslaCrypt/AlphaCrypt ransomware. He wrote in a Monday post that the malware uses a popup window similar to CTB-Locker to notify users that their files are encrypted, and demands at least $528 in Bitcoin to unlock them.

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