From
http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/england/manchester/5034384.stm
Woman targeted by web hackers
A woman from Greater Manchester has become a victim of an internet
scam
in which hackers hijack computer files and blackmail owners to get
them
back.
Helen Barrow, a 40-year-old nurse from Rochdale, is believed to be one
of the first victims of the con in the UK.
Criminals encrypt files with complex passwords, leaving a ransom note
telling victims not to contact police.
Ms Barrow's note said that she would have to buy drugs from an online
pharmacy to find out the password.
The new phenomenon, known as Ransomware, means victims cannot
access any
of the files stored in their My Documents folder.
Ms Barrow, from Littleborough, discovered her computer files had
vanished and replaced by one 30-digit password-protected folder.
When I realised what had happened, I just felt sick to the core
Helen Barrow
She also found a new file named "instructions how to get your files
back".
Ms Barrow contacted police and an IT expert who managed to recover
some
of her files, which included coursework for her nursing degree.
The senior sister said: "When I realised what had happened, I just
felt
sick to the core.
"I was in shock.
"It was a horrible feeling and I thought I was going to lose all of my
work.
"I had lots of family photographs and personal letters on the computer
and to think that other people could have been looking at them was
awful."
A message had appeared on her computer screen telling her she had
contracted an unnamed virus.
It is thought the message was part of the scam and she inadvertently
downloaded it.
The virus is known as Archiveus and victims are told to buy
pharmaceutical drugs from an internet chemist thought to be based in
Russia.
A Greater Manchester Police spokesman said: "Our High Tech Crime
Unit is
aware of this new type of crime and incidents of this kind could
increase in future."
Story from BBC NEWS:
http://news.bbc.co.uk/go/pr/fr/-/1/hi/england/manchester/5034384.stm
Published: 2006/05/31 15:59:53 GMT
(c) BBC MMVI