Ransomware: Last Week Tonight with John Oliver (HBO)

John Oliver discusses ransomware attacks, why they’re on the rise, and what can be done about them.

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[chiefsilverback]

John overlooked the fact that the attack on Colonial didn’t target the pipeline control and safety systems, it attacked their billing system. They could have continued to deliver oil/gas but opted not to because they didn’t want to lose revenue.

[rhodesphotoco]

My WiFi lost connection just as John said “and internet service providers are f...”, I seriously thought it was a gag for about a minute, it kept getting funnier!

[MotoCat]

The single greatest tech knowledge I imparted to my Grandma when she became IT independent (aka got her own devices) was how to spot and avoid malicious emails/websites/ads.
In the past 10 years I've helped her through various things like installing a new printer, setting up Netflix on a new TV, how to stalk her friends on facebook without them knowing (that one always leads to fun stories about the things she's found), even sending and receiving emails while on the go using a 4G dongle, and also taught my 88yr old Grandpa to navigate solitare/tripeaks games and watch dash cam footage on youtube.. he then figured out all on his own how to find some classic music on youtube that he hadn't heard in almost 50 years

And during this time, the number of callouts I've had to help with viruses or malware - zero

Parents should teach their kids about safe sex when they come of age, so kids, now it's your turn to teach your grandparents safe internetting.

[sevhells]

People who are enthusiastic about tech: "I have a smart fridge!" People who use/work tech: *have a stash of scissors and hammers, just in case*

[MrTylersmash]

Remember everyone, it wasn't even the ransomware that caused the gas stations to run out, it was the people hoarding gas in plastic bags. Source: I live in North Carolina.

[firstpersonstupidity]

As somebody in the field of cybersecurity, I'm glad we're starting to see real mainstream media coverage about just how dangerous ransomware really is. Now we just need to talk about the rest.

[antonbrakhage]

"If HBO's going to be publicly humiliated, it'll be by releasing the last season of Game of Thrones on its own terms, thank you very much."

That burn was hotter than dragon fire.

[vincentfalcone]

John, you forgot something that everyone needs to do to avoid paying ransomware; Backup Your Data!!! That way you can wipe the computer and restore your important files if they crypto-lock your computer.

[TravisNewton]

As an IT guy, I cannot stress this enough - you need to back up your stuff, and you MUST HAVE AN OFFLINE COPY OF IT. Spending a couple hundred bucks is much cheaper when you need to restore.

[LadyDoomsinger]

Ransomware guy: "Pay me or your chastity cage stays locked."

Chastity Guy: "I'm so into this. Do my buttplug too, please."

[JudgeyJudgeyable]

If phishing emails and texts didn’t almost reliably include typos or mistakes somewhere, i probably would have fallen victim to a bunch by now

[sulanis]

One of the simplest ways to help with cyber Security of our PCs is don't make your main account you use on the PC an admin account. Change it from a Admin to a standard user and every time you need to do something that requires admin rights, just input it.

[jakeisdaboss]

As an individual in the Cyber Security field, I want to say thank you for talking about this and brining attention to it. Media really doesnt touch on attack types and how much a cyber attacker can actually damage infrastructure. Thank you sir.

[PoweredByRainbows]

I’ve watched this show enough to expect that clip with the Russian lady ending with her being arrested for threatening the hackers and the hackers getting away with everything. This show has made me expect the worst in the world and be happily surprised when it’s not that bad.

[LikeTheBuffalo]

The lesson here: You never really know who might be wearing a butt plug.

[garyhenry]

As an IT professional this is all true...this mainly happens bc most businesses dont want to invest in decent IT departments...they rather contract out when needed..and it leaves them vulnerable to things like this. Backup is a thing too...that doesnt happen as much as it should...but the cyber war is on.

[sanderschat]

And always remember: The S in "IoT" stands for: Security

[Aptarus]

Speaking as a cybersec professional: that was a really good educational segment. Knowing how hard it is to make people listen to us, thank you.

[eleweyter]

Also good advice:
Always make full backups on external harddrives or flashsticks. So when the Ransomeware strikes, just delete the harddrive and reload the last backup.
If everyone would be doing that, there would be no Ransomware.

[Freekymoho]

Most of these clowns aren't actually 'hackers' and it's unearned flattery to refer to them as such. If we imagine a hacker as an expert fly-fisher then these guys are the internet equivalent of a tug trawler. They spread a massive net and then tug boat goes brrr