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Friday’s cyber attack that knocked out some of the world’s top websites has been called a “stunning breach of global Internet stability,” and is a reminder of how much of an issue cyber security has become.

October is Cyber Security Awareness Month and more attention is being drawn to the increasing prevalence and sophistication of another internet security problem — phishing and ransomware scams.

Teju Herath, Goodman School of Business Associate Professor of Information Systems, teaches courses on information assurance and holds an Advanced Certificate in Information Assurance.

In a Globe and Mail op-ed co-written with Goodman School of Business Associate Professor of Operations Management Michael Armstrong, Herath explains ransomware and why the risks are heightened with this particular type of security breach.

“Typical hackers steal and sell valuable data such as credit card numbers or passwords and then find customers to buy that data; however, ransomware hackers sell data back to its owners,” explains Herath.

“If your computer is infected by ransomware, your files will be encrypted to render them inaccessible until you pay a ransom.”

The FBI estimated that more than $209-million was paid in U.S. ransoms over just three months earlier this year.

Ransomware specialists are becoming more astute and no longer need to ride the coat tails of emails to infect a whole network of computers.

Herath says computer users should run antivirus programs to detect threats, keep operating systems and applications updated, think twice before clicking on unexpected email attachments and back up files on a regular basis.