A new variant of the Chimera ransomware is combining scareware tactics with regular file encryption operations, threatening users it will publish their personal files online if the ransom is not paid until its deadline.

Security researchers from Botfrei were the ones who discovered this particular strain of the malware. According to their findings, the ransomware is distributed via emails sent to victims, which contain a link to a Dropbox Web page. Users visiting this link are infected with the Chimera ransomware. Users who have the unfortunate fate of clicking the Dropbox link and catching a dose of Chimera have their files encrypted and are asked to pay.