Online crime takes a turn for the worse when developers are starting to refer to ransomware as a “great security tool”. That is exactly what FrozrLock is claiming, as this new ransomware-as-a-service tool encrypts files in mere minutes. For now, the tool is advertised at a price of US$220, although that number may come down sooner or later. This is yet another interesting development in the world of cybercrime, to say the least.
FrozrLock is A Security Tool, In A Way
On paper, the assumption made by the FrozrLock developers holds up. Their new toolkit is capable of encrypting sensitive computer files in minutes, which can be seen as a security feature. Unfortunately, this tool is designed to encrypt other people’s files without their permission and extract a Bitcoin payment from these users. For just US$220, this ransomware-as-a-service tool could be yours.
FrozrLock was first discovered a few weeks ago, as the malware has been tied to several file encryption incidents dating back to April of 2017. As one would come to expect these days, the first victims were discovered in Russia, although the origin of distribution remains a bit of a mystery. We do know how this new type of malware has been spreading itself, though.
As it turns out, FrozrLock has been distributed through JavaScript downloaders. One of the primary types of ransomware to come forth from this ransomware-as-a- service toolkit is AutoDecrypt, which we recently touched upon in a different article. Ever since that discovery, a few new details regarding these RaaS have come to light, such as how the tool is coded in C# and doesn’t alter file extensions.
Moreover, this offering will prove to be quite a powerful tool for aspiring internet criminals. Customers of the $220 service will get unlimited rebuilds of their ransomware strain, which means they can continuously improve upon their own creation as they see fit. The malware can be built using an online drag-and-drop system, which means a lot of new malware types can be expected to hit computer users all over the world in the coming months.
The developer of FrozrLock was also nice enough to provide all of its customers with a file decrypter, which they can send out to victims once they paid the Bitcoin ransom. It is good to know an official decrypter tool exists, and we can only hope security experts will come up with their own iteration in the coming weeks. Paying a ransom demand is never the best solution when dealing with these types of attacks.
For the time being, it appears the ransomware threat is far from over right now. That should not come as a surprise to anyone, though, as it remains a very powerful and popular tool for online criminals. Ransomware-as-a-service toolkits like FrozrLock will allow anyone with malicious intent to create their own types of malware with relative ease. The US$220 fee is a bit steep, but anyone successfully extracting Bitcoin ransom payments will make their money back in no time.
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