Ransomware has been around for a while, but has it made headlines recently due to several high-profile ransomware attacks against hospitals and other health care facilities.
The malware works by locking your computer to prevent you from accessing data until you pay a ransom. Hospitals are the perfect mark for this kind of extortion because they provide critical care and rely on up-to-date information from patient records. Without quick access to medication histories, surgery directives, and other information, patient care can get delayed or halted and could result in harm to patients. Once ransomware attacks a computer or device, the virus may spread and all other computers on that same network could be at risk. This could have catastrophic results for a hospital.
Everyone at Cooper has a responsibility to our patients, to each other, and to Cooper to be vigilant in protecting against ransomware and/or other computer viruses. The following information will help you protect the integrity of our computer systems and networks.
Q: What is ransomware?
A: Ransomware is a type of malicious virus that gets installed on your computer, encrypts all your files and then demands payment in order to decrypt and unlock your files.
Q: How does my computer get infected with ransomware?
A: Your computer can get infected with ransomware in a couple of different ways. The most common way is by opening an infected email attachment disguised as a resume, bank statement, invoice, notification of lottery winning, or asking you to change a password. Be suspicious of these kinds of emails, particularly if you don’t recognize them as a vendor or other person you normally do business with. The Cooper IT Department will NEVER send you an email with a link asking you to change or verify your password. The emails often look legitimate and you won’t know that the attachment is infected until it is too late. Use a critical eye and don’t open any suspicious emails.
Another way to get infected is by visiting websites that may have been infected with the ransomware virus. Again, these can be completely legitimate websites that don’t know their websites have been hijacked and infecting computers with ransomware.
Q: How will I know if my computer has been infected?
A. The fact is you won’t know your computer has been infected with the virus until it’s too late. After the virus is done encrypting all your data, a message will pop up on your computer screen (a ransom note) with all the instructions on how to pay the ransom, how much the ransom costs and how much time you have to pay the ransom.
Q: What should I do if I get a suspicious email?
A: First of all, DON’T OPEN IT! Delete the email and report it to the IT Help Desk. The IT Department should be advised of all suspicious emails to they can take steps to block further receipt of them. Unfortunately, computer hackers, and those who seek to hold organizations’ computer systems hostage, are clever at finding new ways to break through computer firewalls. Therefore, everyone must constantly be on alert for suspicious emails.