File Extension Base Crypto-Ransomware Vaccine

Crypto-ransomware attacks have become one of the biggest cybersecurity threats to enterprises and government institutes. Traditional ransomware protection solutions have limited prevention techniques. This study focuses on file extensions to suggest a new ransomware vaccine solution for preventing ransomware encryption. Analysis and test results show that blurring file extensions dramatically reduces encrypted files on the system. Therefore, the implications of this study could be used for approaching ransomware prevention differently and developing new methods or tools.