So I opened a email the was titled "fedex notification" Friday and the computer went nuts for a minute and then the attached screen popped up. 3 out of 5 people think it is fake but I'm not sure. I was going to pay them but I didn't realize how hard it is to get bitcoins. There is not a countdown clock like other ransomeware. I still have access to all my files right now. The end of the three days is Monday night

I call BS on it!
Don't attempt to go to those sites.
They WILL crack into your computer on those sites!!!!!
It's a trick to get you there where with one click you authorize them to install the pirate script.
In 3 days apparently you will know for sure.....
They CAN'T just grab everything.
Reinstalling doesn't help they claim.....oh really????
So the encryption stays on the hard drive or what????
BS.
Don't pay!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

The sites under step four just say "you must pay before viewing". I want to call it bs but the only thing that concerns me is when I opeded the attachment In the email it started running through c prompt. Just scared to lose quickbooks since it is the business computer

Quickbooks operates based on it's own database!!!!!
It is NOT on your computer.
They have your data.

If you still have access to your files, just ignore it. I would clear all cookies tho, update and run antivirus etc... big computer clean out. Usually if you have been properly hacked, you will have no access to your computer... or only limited... it sounds to me like they are bluffing, hoping you are gullible

If you have access to another computer... switch that one off for a few days... or set the computer to 1983 or something... so if they have installed anything, it wont know what day it is

good luck... oh, and don't open emails you don't recognise, or don't have your name in it. Anything addressed to 'the user' 'the administrator' 'dear sir' that don't mention you by name is just a generic email sent to lots of people, hoping to find a few dummies... (don't be one)

I wouldnt touch that with a ten foot pole .... do you have an account with FedEx or BitCoin ? If you do they would not send such a message.

Do a search to see if anyone else has come across the same thing .... bunch of computer nerds are usually right on top of that stuff .... so is Microsoft and they will block it if you do your regular updates.

Quickbooks did exactly for this reason the "subscriber" operation instead of having customers store their data. They have a protection encryption on their servers that is one of the toughest out there.
Your data is safe. You don't need to back up anything. They do it for you.
It's in the price you pay.....don't ask how I know all that.......
As I said. This whole things sounds BS to me.
You are too small of a fish. Now if you were a hospital and they got your files......different story.
What's said is these criminals now don't even have to leave their homes to steal.
In their parent's basement in their pajamas taking what they are "entitled" to.......

That depends on which version you buy! I still use a version where my data ONLY resides on MY computer. I'll find another product if they quit offering this version. And yes, I have multiple backups every time I use qb.

Ha! Soooo what you are saying is that you have a quickbook from 1992? Geeeeeee. In about 6 years you can get a blue license plate for it

No, I am currently using QB Pro 2014, I'm not doing any payroll so no need to upgrade very often. I checked and the current version is QB 2016 which is still available with local database, although they are pushing the "cloud" subscription. In 2008-2010 I was a QB Pro partner and helped clients with QB installation, setup, backups and maintenance. I would setup their database on their own server so multiple users could access and update at the same time. All non-subscription and non-cloud versions, which they still offer today.

The QB Pro 2016 is available at Sams Club and various online retailers for $189.00

I also have the qb pro 2014. I don't remember why it was recommended to me but that is what my business advisor recommended. I have payroll so I have a monthly fee and have to be connected to the net but I think that's just to download the dumbass tax tables that seem to change all the time. I hate computers because I don't care to keep up with technology.

I took it to an IT company today that does IT work for company's. They have everything from one computer clients to hospitals. They will automatically back up my files via the net every night and do a hard backup every two weeks as well as keep up the virus and malware programs.

It cost $95 a month but that is really nothing for a business. They think the ransomeware was a fake also and if it was real it would have shut down at 10:05 tonight but I won't know until they open in the morning. I'll let y'all know and thanks for all the input.

I am on this forum two to three times a day I just don't post.

Whew.... lucky you told us that

Gabs.... you can call off the hit man now

Don't call off the hit man gabs. That way everyone here will know if you hired a good one or if you were a

The threat was real but the IT company was about to clean it out before the time was up. They had also never seen one that didn't lock your files. Guess it was a lazy hacker or maybe the hitman gab hired.

Gordon you suck! I hired you to make some moneyzzzz for the forum and you hit members that don't post often??? Geeeee. Next time you need to lock the files by the freaking way! .... These kids nowadays.....

Nope, not fake, you've been infected by Cryptowall virus. We had it hit our office twice in the last 4 months, but luckily we're on Citrix and in a virtual environment so we were able to get it taken care of. My network engineer and myself designed our systems to be able to recover from something like this and it worked flawlessly.

You have two options,
1, pay the ransom
2, loose your files... It's literally as simple as that

If you have backups and you haven't disconnected them from your PC then chances are that they also got encrypted. It's an ugly virus and virtually impossible to get around unless you have backups that are disconnected, or like in our case a virtual environment.

How do you avoid it? Don't open emails from people you don't know? Is it the act of opening the email that infects you? Or do you have to click a link or button within the email?

Contact the sender and ask did they send an attachment.
Get another cheap ass computer and use it only for email. Jon and Elwood has mentioned a cheap computer that could be used for that.
Is there a way you can encrypt your files with a password yourself so they can't? I believe Excel and Word allow you to password protect documents.


My anti-virus checks email for malicious links and such.

Check your bogus type e-mails on a Library computer "Opps!"