Ransomware has been a huge problem for businesses and domestic homes alike. They’ve come in various forms over the past 3-4 years and have caused major incidents where public data and sensitive information has been put in serious jeopardy. The most recent incident in Atlanta where a ransomware attack brought the entire city to its proverbial knees is a good cautionary tale for everyone.
However, despite all the supposed doom and gloom, not everything’s as bad as it seems. Ransomware removal tools have developed just as quickly and efficiently. This has made it easier and more practical to remove ransomware. It has also contributed in bringing down the rates of ransomware attacks in the first quarter of 2018, compared to 2017 and 2016.
While 2017 saw new ransomware like Locky, Mole, Cerber and CryptoLocker, in 2018 there have only been a few obscure reports of any major new ransomware attacks. Ransomware removal tools have simultaneously been updated and modified to recognize and remove ransomware scripts before they have the opportunity to infect a computer.
WannaCry, the primary ransomware antagonist throughout 2016 and 2017 has also witnessed a decline in numbers. The reason for that is the plethora of options that have emerged in the first quarter of 2018 that have made it even easier to remove ransomware of this nature.
This doesn’t mean that there isn’t anything to worry about. Many experts believe that these ransomware first became so effective by thoroughly evaluating the defense mechanisms designed against them using a number of false attacks that began in 2015. What followed were continuous waves of new and innovative ransomware attacks. There were effectively no ransomware removal tools that could deal with them at that point because all their methods had been thoroughly recognized by the initial false attacks.
A similar pattern might be unfolding right now, and this relative decline in ransomware decline could be the calm before the storm. Only time will tell whether an enduring victory has been achieved in ransomware removal or a new wave of ransomware is being prepped for fresh and more deadly attacks on businesses and domestic computers alike.
