The Star Wars Twitter botnet, the return of Lavabit, a critical Cisco Webex flaw, and the St. Louis Library ransomware story are discussed.

Citing security concerns, Google announced that it will soon block JavaScript (.js) file attachments in Gmail.

A Ponemon Institute report on ransomware revealed 48 percent of businesses surveyed paid a ransom in exchange for getting their data back.

Security researchers have identified a new and evasive mobile ransomware strain called Charger on the Google Play app store.

Services are being restored to the St. Louis Public Library computer system after a ransomware attack impacted access to machines and data at all 17 branches.

Researchers are keeping close tabs on a new ransomware strain called Spora that offers victims unique payment options.

The news of the week is discussed, including the ShadowBrokers’ farewell, GoDaddy’s buggy domain validation issue, MongoDB ransoms, and the latest with St. Jude Medical.

Mike Mimoso and Chris Brook discuss the news of the week, including on this week’s U.S. Senate Committee on Armed Service hearing, the Burlington Electric ‘Hack’, FireCrypt, and Security Without Borders.

In addition to encrypting files, a new strain of ransomware, FireCrypt, also attempts to carry out a weak DDoS attack.

Threatpost writers recap 2016’s biggest news stories, including the proliferation of IoT botnets, ransomware, the FBI vs. Apple story, and more.