WARNING! Circulating Windows 10 Scam & Ransomware


Top tips to protect your users from Cryptowall
- Education - Educate users to never click on emails from unknown recipients. Make users aware of the scams going around. e.g Aust Post & Windows 10 scams
- Reliable antivirus software subscriptions - We are often removing viruses from infected machines that had free antivirus software. The chances of getting infected when using a reliable paid antivirus software is far less as you pay for what you get. It is also important to ensure antivirus and windows operating system are up to date.
- Good spam/virus email filtering service - Google for Work has a great email filtering service to filter out spam and viruses. If you have your own email server e.g Microsoft exchange or website hosted emails, it may be worth considering a 3rd party email filtering service. This will allow all content to be scanned prior to reaching your inbox.
- Firewall - A good next generation firewall can intercept and block the connection between your network and the source site used for infection. We often install a Checkpoint 600 series security appliance for small businesses which provides suitable protection.
- Backups - Multiple backups are important; we always recommend 2 at a minimum for critical data. The first being a local back and the second an offsite backup (not located within office). Also have versioning of backups is also handy as you can restore a file to yesterday's, 2 days ago, a week ago or further depending on your preference.
- Lock down user access - remove administrative privileges of user accounts on computers. This can help prevent them from accidentally installing malware or viruses.
- Monitoring of computers and servers - Have your IT team monitor alerts and perform regular audits on the health of your computers and servers. This allows for detection of potential issues such as non-working antivirus software and backups.