Page 24 - Leisure Living Magazine Spring 2017

Hacking
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longer and uses a variety of letters, symbols and numbers. Use a different password for every website you use, and try not to reference personal information.
Protect against social engineering techniques by using caution when asked for personal information. A legitimate vendor will usually verify your information and ask you to answer security questions you’ve pre-chosen (e.g., mother’s maiden name). Also, you will rarely be asked to provide identifying information unless you have placed the call, or more than the last four digits of your Social Security number. If you received the call and are suspicious, ask for a number to call the vendor back and verify it first. You might also independently verify the number as belonging to the vendor by checking its website.
Q: What is the latest hacking technique?
A: “Ransomware,” the newest technique, involves encrypting the data on the victim’s computer so that the victim cannot access the data without paying a fee or “ransom.” If you boot up your computer and see a large image demanding that you pay $300 to an unknown party in the next 48 hours or risk losing all the data on your computer, you’ve become a ransomware victim. This likely happened because you opened an untrustworthy attachment or clicked on a bogus link contained in a phishing email, which allowed the malware to download on your PC.
Ransomware has been extremely successful because it is nearly impossible for individuals to retrieve their data without paying, and because hackers actually send the key to unlock data
when individuals pay the ransom. Therefore, anxious individuals and organizations have been willing to pay these fees.
The solution? Back up your data often, and disconnect the backup drive from your central processing unit to prevent it from also being infected. If your computer becomes compromised, it is best to wipe it entirely and re-load your data from your backup. Or, if your antivirus vendor has a fix for your specific type of ransomware, you can clean your computer. If neither option is possible, you must decide what your data is worth. The FBI has advised consumers not to encourage this behavior by paying the ransom, but large numbers of individuals and organizations (including hospitals and local police departments) are choosing to pay. Use the tools suggested above and you may never have to face such a decision.
This “Law You Can Use” consumer legal information column was provided by the Ohio State Bar Association. It was prepared by Milton Sutton, an attorney in the Columbus office of Frost Brown Todd LLC. Articles appearing in this column are intended to provide broad, general information about the law. It is not intended as legal advice. Before applying this information to a specific legal problem, readers are urged to seek advice from an attorney.
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