Ransomware squeezes users with bogus Windows activation demand

A new Trojan tries to extort money from users by convincing them to dial international telephone numbers to reactive Windows, a security researcher said today.

Once on a PC, the malware displays a message claiming that Windows is locked and must be reactivated, said Mikko Hypponen, the chief research officer of Helsinki-based F-Secure. Users seeing the message cannot boot Windows in either normal or Safe mode, Hypponen said.

This copy of Windows is locked. You may be a victim of fraud or there may be an internal error, the message states — via redwolf.newsvine.com