Kovter police ransomware infecting 44,000 devices per day

by Alastair Stevenson  13 Aug 2014 The infamous Kovter police ransomware is infecting nearly 44,000 devices per day, earning criminals as much as $1,000 per successful attack.
Damballa revealed an alarming spike in ransomware attacks in its State of Infections report, revealing a 153 percent increase in Kovtar infections from May to July, when the malware was infecting as many as 43,713 mobile devices, tablets, PCs and laptops per day.
Kovter is a form of police ransomware that tries to extort payment from its victims by locking infected systems to display a bogus message masquerading as a 'fine' payment message from a legitimate law enforcement agency.
"Regardless of the victim's actual viewing history, the malware can present 'proof' of illicit activity and demand ransom to allegedly avoid penalties and jail time. It's essential for victims to know that paying the ransom will not remove Kovter from your system or restore its functionality," explained the threat report.
 
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