Virus Coaxes Man to Turn Himself in for Child Pornography

A 21-year-old man turned himself in to Virginia police after receiving a pop-up message that led him to believe authorities had warrants on file for his child pornography use.

Jay Matthew Riley, 21, of Woodbridge, Va., was charged, per Prince William County Police Department, with three counts of possession of child pornography, one count of using a communication device to solicit certain offenses involving children and one count of indecent liberties with a minor.

The message Riley received claimed to be an "FBI warning," which informed him that child pornography had been identified on his computer, and instructed him to either pay a fine or face prosecution. As it turns out, the message was fake; it was a virus reportedly known as Reveton ransomware, which is designed to bag money from victims after they click on compromised websites. Read more...