Marcus Hutchins, the man behind this victory, doesn’t consider himself a hero — but the world certainly does. This young man spent three days fighting off the WannaCry virus, as it wormed its way into the UK’s hospital networks. Luckily for Marcus, the virus itself wasn’t well-constructed and, once he located its weak spot, the entire bot effectively collapsed.

Read More: Massive Global Cyberattack Has Ties to the NSA

The Damage Caused By the WannaCry Virus

First emerging on May 12, 2017, the WannaCry virus infected a reported 230,000 computers. WannaCry is a strand of ransomware, which means it locks a user’s access to his or her device and demands payment to unlock them. In this case, WannaCry asks for $300 to $600 in Bitcoins. By May 15, the hackers had allegedly received around $50,000 from their malware’s antics.

Despite its global reach, WannaCry’s main targets appear to have been FedEx, Deutsche Bahn, the UK’s National Health Service (NHS), and Spain’s Telefónica. WannaCry seized control of these company computers by taking advantage of a loophole in an older Windows operating system. Microsoft has since developed a patch to fix this issue.

How to Keep Your Devices Safe

• Update your version of Windows on your PC.  If you haven’t updated your computer to the latest operating system, or if your computer no longer receives updates, then your computer is still vulnerable to attacks like WannaCry and other malware.
• Use a firewall and run regular virus scans. Prevention is always the best strategy. Once your computer is infected with malware, it can be expensive, frustrating, and time-consuming to remove the infection.
• Be prepared for the worst. Back up any important data on your computer by using a dropbox or cloud system. That way, if WannaCry or another virus strikes your operating system, you won’t lose any important data.

Most of all, remember that computers aren’t the only thing at risk these days. Increasingly, attacks on smartphones are increasing year by year and becoming more sophisticated. That’s when DFNDR can come in handy.  

1. Don’t click on anything.

One of the only ways that computer viruses can download onto your computer in this day and age is if you click on a pop-up or banner ad that appears on your screen. Don’t do it! Even if the ad features cute puppies or asks you to donate to orphaned children, close the ad and navigate to the company’s website through your regular browser. Additionally, configure your browser to ask you before it runs files and downloads, rather than running them automatically.

2. Turn off image previews in your email.

Viruses can sometimes be transmitted if you just view infected images in your email client. Instead of leaving yourself vulnerable, disable image preview in your email client, and only view images if you trust the source.

3. Don’t open email links or attachments.

This may be one of the most basic protections, but that doesn’t mean that it doesn’t warrant repeating. Again, viruses often can’t be downloaded without you doing some clicking. So, even if you get what seems like an innocent attachment from your great aunt, don’t open it without scanning your files with an anti-malware application.

4. Turn off autorun.

Viruses often work by attaching to your drive and then automatically installing themselves on other media connected to your system. This means that thumb drives, external hard disks, and network drives can put viruses onto your system.

The best way to keep your computer safe is with a quality antivirus software program. We suggest PSafe Total. Our software has real-time computer virus scans 24-hours a day and seven-days a week, so your computer will be protected from online viruses on public and private Internet. Installation is automatic and free, so there’s no reason not to try it.