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Ransomware Asks For High Score Instead of Money (arstechnica.com)
An anonymous reader quotes a report from Ars Technica: Rensenware" forces players to get a high score in a difficult PC shoot-em-up to decrypt their files. As Malware Hunter Team noted yesterday, users on systems infected with Rensenware are faced with the usual ransomware-style warning that "your precious data like documents, musics, pictures, and some kinda project files" have been "encrypted with highly strong encryption algorithm." The only way to break the encryption lock, according to the warning, is to "score 0.2 billion in LUNATIC level" on TH12 ~ Undefined Fantastic Object. That's easier said than done, as this gameplay video of the "bullet hell" style Japanese shooter shows. As you may have guessed from the specifics here, the Rensenware bug was created more in the spirit of fun than maliciousness. After Rensenware was publicized on Twitter, its creator, who goes by Tvple Eraser on Twitter and often posts in Korean, released an apology for releasing what he admitted was "a kind of highly-fatal malware." The apology is embedded in a Rensenware "forcer" tool that Tvple Eraser has released to manipulate the game's memory directly, getting around the malware's encryption without the need to play the game (assuming you have a copy installed, that is). While the original Rensenware source code has been taken down from the creator's Github page, a new "cut" version has taken its place, showing off the original joke without any actually malicious forced encryption.
This sounds like like a recruitment tool for the Star League to defend The Frontier against Xur and the Kodan armada.
Do you also think that if someone designs a new gun he should be in jail? If not I would be glad to know why this is different.
Avantgarde Hebrew science fiction
Someone has likely mirrored the original code. It will likely wind up used in other tools. This person needs to be in jail.
Ransomware doesn't occur in a vacuum but rather it's a simple application that uses many different libraries. Anyone with half a brain can make it, so what does it matter if someone mirrors the code?
I think more effort should be put into protecting data from accidental or malicious destruction by an application rather than trying to force the world to conform any particular set of laws. Seriously, it wouldn't take many changes to prevent this kind of shit from happening.
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This is my kind of high stakes gameplay. Challenge accepted.
To get your files back you need to nuke North Korea with less then 500 us troops loss
THIS! See this is why i like your comments. you normally dont feed into the bullshit and you have a solid head on your shoulders. Why punish the people pointing out how fucking stupid you are, when you can just learn how to avoid it completely. people with no idea on how the internet works, Im looking at you Billy Gates.... adopt all this new fangled IoT crap thats insecure against viruses(what we will call it) as a sheep skin condom. yet want to jail the people telling them that that condom only protects against pregnancy and not HiV. its ludicrous! Atleast go after the maufacturers that are just trying to peel the dollars out of your pocket and give no fucks about what happens on your network.
Not all operating systems do. And the tools that most OS's provide(windows mainly) are filled full of more holes than the item that will let the intruders in. Its like when people buy a .99 cent store pad lock and wonder how their dog broke into the treat box it was on. When you can chew thru a lock its not secure.
That game name could easily be an error code from Java or maybe C#.
How long will it take until manufacturers take security seriously?
Irresponsible disclosure is responsible
Just pay someone who plays games a lot to reach the score for you. Basement nerds, this is your five minutes of fortune!
If you post as an AC, don't expect me to spend a mod point on you.
you have a solid head on your shoulders.
Don't tell anyone but it's only the outside that's solid because the inside is squishy. ;)
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Better than empty!