If you watched or read yesterday’s news you probably saw a story about some guy who found a simple way to stop the spread of the new ransomware virus. This was an extremely misleading story and made it sound like the threat had been stopped.

This is not true. The fix put in place was extremely easy to bypass by the virus’s creators and only worked for a short time.

The ransomware virus has already been fixed and released again, it is still on the loose. 

Please read yesterday’s post for complete information about the threat and how to protect yourself. 

The threat from this new virus is still extremely high. You are your own best line of defense, and you can avoid becoming a victim by simply trusting nothing that lands in your Inbox. Do not download ANY attachment without verifying that the sender really did pass it along. DO NOT ASSUME it is Ok just because it comes from someone you know, that is easy to fake.

If you receive an attachment, delete the email and then contact the person who sent it and ask them if they really did send you something. If they did they can simply send it again. If they did not, you just saved yourself a lot of trouble. or company

If an attachment comes from a company, delete it and contact the company directly. For example, if you receive an email from UPS saying a delivery confirmation is attached, delete it. Contact UPS and ask if they have something for you.

Trust nothing, delete anything with a link or attachment. 

The only thing that can protect you is you.