Europol Wants to Track and Handle Ransomware

When it comes to viruses and malware, ransomware is one of the nastier versions. Taking people’s prized memories and work with approaching deadlines, the ransomware often locks these and the entire operating system behind a layer of encryption that makes it nearly impossible to get without paying the fee that the ransom owners want. Now Europol, the European policing agency, wants to join us and help other agencies tackle the threat around the world.

Co-ordinated by Europol, the No More Ransom site will keep track of not just ransomware but also the gangs behind the software as agencies tackle and take down the groups.

Wil van Gemert, the deputy director of operations stated that “for a few years now ransomware has become a dominant concern for EU law enforcement”. Going on Gemert explains that through the site they “except to help many people to recover control over their files while raising awareness and educating the population on how to maintain their devices clean from malware”.

Containing information about the software itself, listing precautionary measures you could take to prevent yourself falling victim to the ransomware, it’s hoped that the site, combined with the updated knowledge of how to decrypt your files for each strand of ransomware, could give people the options they need to recover their files without having to fork out hundreds of pounds.