Microsoft has been monitoring a steady growth in the number of ransomware detected on Windows computers.

To observe the growth Microsoft uses a group of computers equipped with security software that detects and reports any ransomware passing through. According to the numbers the growth will most likely continue into the next quarter. The number of reported ransomware is, however, not equal to the number of infected computers as the system makes a note of every malicious software it comes whether it’s installed or not.

Ransomware as a Service

The incline mostly seems to be attributed to the growing popularity of Ransomware as a Service (RaaS). With RaaS, ransomware is being offered up by its developer as a service to less tech savvy hackers so they can still use an effective ransomware even though they haven’t created anything. These criminals can basically rent their ransomware and are only responsible for the distribution of the malicious software. The developers just charge a fee for the use of their ransomware to the distributor(s).

Ransomware families

The growth of the number of reported ransomware goes hand in hand with the growth of the ransomware variants. At around the same date last year a total of about 64 different ransomware groups were detected. For the same period this year already 71 different groups have been reported. Also, the Spora- and Cerber ransomware versions are growing in popularity amongst hackers. According to Microsoft this information underlines the importance of having an up-to-date online security. These days the number one mode of distribution is still the use of infected attachments to emails.