Preventing a virus attack is the best policy

If you read my earlier post about the recent virus attack, you’ll know how stupid I was to let it happen. Don’t get me wrong – a virus attack can happen to anyone, regardless of how careful you are, but I made it much easier for the attackers to get in and to do damage. If it had been the ‘real’ world, rather than the cyber world, the equivalent would have been me leaving the doors and windows open and a note on the door saying “Go right in, help yourself”. Looking back on it, I can see where I went wrong. 

What did I do wrong?

First, let me state that it’s much easier to be prepared and to take precautions than to deal with the consequences. So I shouldn’t have been lax in my defences. It’s actually embarrassing to admit how stupid I was, but I’m being honest about it in the hope that it might help you avoid the same fate.

Being more specific, here are some of the things I did (or failed to do) which allowed the attackers to gain access to my files.

• I didn’t backup my files or my system regularly
• I didn’t backup my email address book
• I didn’t back up any important programs, such as TypeItIn, or my information manager program
• I kept my external hard drive connected far too much
• I didn’t take the attack seriously when I first saw it
• In a nutshell, I didn’t take adequate precautions

What I should have done

One of the most important things I should have done was to use a really good backup facility. And even that’s of limited use unless you back everything up on a regular basis.

In a nutshell, I should have taken security very seriously.

The backup system I use now is AOMEI Backupper. I made the mistake early on of not taking this program seriously, just like I failed to take the virus attack seriously, and for the same reason – it didn’t look as professional as I would expect. The name, just initial letters, sounded corny (to me, anyway). Backupper just sounds odd. Regardless, this system is spot-on. It allows you to easily set backups in place, and (and this is vital) it allows you to schedule them so they take place automatically in future. Incidentally, I don’t know what the initials stand for, and if you keep forgetting or confusing them (I did), use this acronym I made up:

All Output Matches Every Input.

There’s nothing complicated about using AOMEI. In fact, it’s as easy as you could imagine. You just select whether to make a backup of selected files or folders, or of your entire system. You specify where the backup will be stored. If you want, you specify the schedule. That’s it! Easy. I’ve tried various backup programs in the past and some of them were not just confusing but downright obscure and difficult to understand. This one is at the other end of the scale.

I should also have stored my backups OFF my PC. Actually, I did that, but if you schedule your backups (which I failed to do) then it’s awkward to get them stored off the PC and onto an external hard drive. Awkward, because your external hard drive won’t be connected all the time. Er, hopefully.

The way round this isn’t difficult. What I do is specify the backups are stored ON my PC, then set a reminder in place so that I get an automated email ‘nudge’ to remind me to move the backups to the external hard drive.

Again, this isn’t difficult. It just takes a little forethought. And all you have to do then is keep the last three backups, or however many you choose to keep, and delete older ones from time to time.

Being prepared saves you a lot of trouble

Another thing to keep in mind is to use a dependable anti-virus (AV) program. You can use Microsoft Security Essentials, or, if you use Windows 10, Windows Defender. Defender isn’t a great deal different, but it’s built into Windows 10, so it’s actually part of the system.

If you want to use another AV (and that’s definitely an option), you still don’t have to fork out a fortune to stay safe. AVG has been around for years, and when I used to have a subscription to a PC magazine it was routinely in the top 3 of the AV programs, which included both free and paid for programs.

AVG isn’t the only good free AV program, but it’s one I’m most familiar with. And if you use AVG or another non-Microsoft AV program, Defender will also run routine scans from time to time as a backup.

Actually, there’s a glitch in my system at the moment, so Windows Defender won’t run. I use AVG instead, and Defender does occasional scans as a backup to that. Seems to work okay.

Be on your guard against a virus attack!

It pays to be consistenly aware of the dangers of virus attacks. Take everything seriously. At the first sign of a virus attack, take action. Run a full scan with your AV program and remove the danger (if you’re using Windows 10, you can download Windows Defender Offline, which saves you being connected and still potentially at risk). And if you suspect anything is still lurking in your system, get a qualified IT professional to check it over. If you know what you’re doing, change the settings on your router so that any attacker will be put ‘off the scent’. 

Ransomware

The virus attack I was hit with was a brand of ransomware. There are many versions of this type of virus, but they all share the same tactics – they either block access to your system or encrypt your files, and they offer to give you the decryption key in exchange for payment.

Don’t pay them a penny! If you pay them, you are telling them that you are willing to pay, and they will very likely repeat the performance at a later date. That’s assuming that they actually provide you with the decryption key. Remember, these people are criminals, so don’t assume they will play by any rules.

If they only get one person (or company) in 100 that they infect to pay them after a successful virus attack, they will still be making a fortune. They are attacking countless thousands every day! Even a tiny conversion rate spells big money for them. For your own good, pay them nothing. It’s understandable how some people will feel the need to pay, no matter what.

This applies specially to businesses. They will feel that their information is of such great value it simply must be released back to them, at any cost. Sadly though that payment might prove to be the first in a stream of demands.

Don’t put yourself in that position; safeguard your system and make your security your absolute priority. It’s the only way you can be sure to keep your files safe.

Make safety your number one priority

Start today to safeguard your system.

• Get a good AV program running
• Get a comprehensive backup system in place
• Keep all your files off your PC, safely stored on an external hard drive
• Store your current files in your My Documents folder (or a randomly-named folder)
• Schedule your backups to run automatically

Actually, you might want to create another folder entirely, one that’s separate from My Documents. That will be the first folder to be hit in the event of an attack, so it might be a good idea to actually store your current documents in some other, randomly-named folder.

And have a schedule set up so that your files (in whichever folder you keep them in) are backed up regularly, maybe even daily, and scheduled to backup automatically. If you’re using AOMEI you can set it up to create a backup as soon as your system is turned on, or alternatively just before it switches off, or at any time you choose.

Be paranoid!

I guess you might think by now that I’m becoming paranoid about system security. You’re right, well spotted! This is one thing you should be paranoid about. Once you system is infiltrated, and your files encrypted, you’re done for. Your only hope is to have a security system in place, something along the lines of what I’ve just described. Then, if the worst happens, you can restore your system using a full system backup, and be up and running in almost no time.

So yeah, be paranoid, if that’s what it takes. Virus attacks are not fun. They can destroy your entire system, or your files, and if you run a business of any kind and you keep your business files on your system, they can ruin your business.

One last thing …

Don’t forget to backup things like your email address book. You can easily export it in CSV form, and schedule a backup of it, along with your documents and photos. Same goes for any program (such as TypeItIn) that holds lots of useful information. Back them up just as carefully as you backup any documents or images.

And if you need to, make use of Recuva, or a similar program. Recuva can find any deleted files and tell you if they are indeed recoverable. If they’ve already been overwritten too heavily it’s probably too late, but as a last resort it’s worth checking if Recuva can get back your valuable lost files.

Remember, some of those files, such as family photographs, simply cannot be replaced. If they’re gone and cannot be recovered it can spell a real disaster. So take security very seriously. Take the time to set up a good security routine now, before the worst scenario happens.

Yeah, be paranoid if that’s what it takes! It’s that serious.