Ransomware extorts each victim for nearly $7000

The newly discovered ransomware known as “ 7ev3n” is especially “gr33dy.”

A report published earlier this week by BleepingComputer cautioned readers of this nasty new malware, which encrypts victims' files and demands 13 bitcoins for the key. Thirteen bitcoins is the equivalent of just over AU$6,825, making the ransom demand “the largest we have seen to date for this type of infection”, the report states.

7ev3n is also highly destructive — it installs a batch file that disables the infected machine's bootup and recovery capabilities, including the Windows Emergency Management System, the Advanced Options startup menu and more.

There is no free decryption key for the ransomware at this time, and even when one pays up, the task of making the system usable again is painstaking, the report warns. Fortunately, 7ev3n is not known to have significantly spread.

This article originally appeared at scmagazineus.com