Acronis today issued a warning about a dangerous type of ransomware called Osiris. This extortion software, which spreads through SPAM emails or infected online advertisements, has already caused the loss of eight years of records at the police department in the Texas city of Crockrell Hill. The growing dangerous trend of increasing ransomware is also evidenced by a recent case in which another ransomware attack blocked guests of an Austrian hotel from accessing their rooms.
What does it do?
Osiris is the seventh generation of Locky ransomware and infects Windows, Mac, and Android devices. In addition, it directly attacks backup systems such as the Volume Shadow Copy Service (VSS). This prevents users from running a system restore using data stored on the attacked computer.
How does it spread?
Osiris typically spreads through spam emails with the subject line “Invoice” or “Order Confirmation” and a compressed attachment containing an infected script. Many antivirus programs do not detect Osiris because it does not use executable files. Another method of distribution is the use of existing advertising networks to infect online advertisements. Osiris ransomware is classified as a crypto Trojan and can spread across an entire corporate network without requiring any interaction with already compromised users, for example by exploiting a corporate CRM system.
How can you protect yourself against it?
The basic defense against ransomware is always regular backups. Due to increasing attacks not only on user data but recently also on backup systems, Acronis has developed the Acronis Active Protection™ technology, which can protect computer systems against Osiris ransomware. This innovative technology is part of the backup solution version introduced last week, Acronis True Image 2017 New Generation. The technology is based on behavioral heuristics, easily detects and stops malicious Osiris activity, and also enables users to immediately restore any affected files.
More detailed information, including screenshots of the attack process, is available for download in this study.
Source: https://www.acronis.cz/varovani-pred-ransomwarem-osiris/
Article author: ZEBR.ai editorial team
