In January this year, there was a notification of success that caused numerous companies, public authorities and hospitals to relax a little. The latter two of these institutions were then the focus of attention for malware, that according to the Federal Criminal Police Office (BKA) and Attorney General could have cooked their goose: Emotet.
The attacks, conducted with the Trojan considered the most dangerous virus ever, had devastating consequences: Clinics could no longer maintain their work, local authorities were suddenly paralysed, and numerous individuals saw irregularities with their online banking because their access data had been compromised.
Emotet is designed as a “door opener” for ransomware infections that are smuggled into networks via an apparently innocent Microsoft Word email attachment using inadequately protected computers, and the global level of damage can only be estimated. In Germany alone it was at least €14.5 million.
The celebrations of success were premature
Unfortunately, it appears that the destruction of the infrastructure behind Emotet announced in January 2021 through international cooperation has certainly not solved the problem.
Now on 16 November it became known that computers already infected by other malware called TrickBot load a file in the background that is quite clearly the Emotet Trojan that was believed to have been exterminated.
Although currently “only” systems infected by TrickBot are at risk, it must be assumed that the cyber criminals behind the new wave of attacks will very soon attempt to infect computers not yet affected using email attachments.
Life insurance for cyber protection
Certain rules apply to opening email attachments: If the sender is unknown, all of the alarm bells should ring, and in case of doubt the attachment should not be opened. If the email is not addressed personally, it is highly likely to be spam. This also applies if the subject line or content of the email is too “attractive”. But in contrast if the language used in the email is anything but attractive and full of mistakes, we urge you to put it in the recycle bin immediately.
Even the most attentive user can make a mistake in a moment of carelessness – and it’s all over. In this case, only a technical solution can help. It should be able to detect and deactivate threats in real-time using AI based antivirus, anti-malware, anti-ransomware and anti-cryptojacking technologies in addition to heuristic behaviour analyses. It should ensure at the same time that all important data is protected on an ongoing basis, and if the worst happens restore the system completely and perfectly without a time delay.
Such “life insurance” exists. It is called Acronis Cyber Protect and is available to companies and end users in a range of variants. Thanks to a 100% detection rate confirmed in the VB100 certification test, even “super” Trojans like Emotet lose their horror.