What do developers do after discovering a software
vulnerability? Why, patch it, of course. Ironically, criminals have learned that lesson too, as one gang has updated the notorious TeslaCrypt
ransomware with new features that are impossible to crack, according to Cisco's
Talos security arm. That means user infected with the latest version (3.01) of the malware can no longer use white hat-engineered software to get their files back. Until someone finds a new solution -- and that seems unlikely -- victims will have to pay.
Companies like Kaspersky and Cisco's Talos have reverse-engineered various pieces of ransomware, helping corporate clients and anyone else rescue files without paying. The security community has also developed better detection and distribution disruption methods for the scourge. According to Talos, "this has lead adversaries to iterating and improving upon the previous release of TeslaCrypt."
We can not say it loud and often enough, ransomware has become the black plague of the internet, spread by highly sophisticated exploit kits and countless spam campaigns.
