Maya sat back in her chair, trying to steady her nerves. Her heart was still racing from the strange pop-up message, and she couldn’t shake the feeling that something wasn’t right. Her mind was buzzing with questions. Who could be behind this? Why did they target her? She knew it wasn’t just a random attack—someone had been watching her online. But how could they have known so much about her?

As she sat in her bedroom, with the glow of her gadgets illuminating the walls, Maya glanced over at her phone, still buzzing in her hand. She hadn’t yet opened Liam’s latest message, but now she felt like she needed to reach out to someone. Liam. He was always the first person to solve a problem, especially when it came to tech.

With a deep breath, Maya quickly typed a message to him:

Maya’s Text to Liam:
"Liam, something strange just happened. I got a message from someone I don’t know. They’re threatening to delete my data unless I pay them. It’s really weird. What do I do?"

A few seconds later, Maya heard the familiar ping of a reply. Liam’s message came in quickly, almost too quickly, like he was already waiting for her to text.

Liam’s Text:
"What? That sounds like a ransom scam. Don’t panic. I’m coming over in 10 minutes. We’ll figure this out."

Maya read his message and felt a bit of relief wash over her. Liam had always been calm in a crisis. He knew how to handle tech problems—he was the kind of person who’d spend hours studying digital security just for fun. Maya felt lucky to have him as a friend.

As she waited for Liam, Maya thought back to the pop-up. What could it mean? Was it a scam to steal her money or personal information? Was someone out there already accessing her files and photos? The message didn’t seem to be targeting her bank account—it was more about her personal data, her online life. This felt different from the typical spam or ads that clogged up her inbox.

Her laptop sat on the desk in front of her, the screen still showing the ominous pop-up. She stared at it for a moment longer, trying to decide what to do. Maya’s natural instinct was to ignore it, shut down her computer, and forget it ever happened. But then another thought crossed her mind—What if it was real? What if someone really could get access to her data? What if this wasn’t a joke, but an attempt to hack into her files?

Maya knew the dangers of the online world. She had read about cybercrimes—people losing their identities, their money, their personal information—all because they clicked on the wrong link or didn’t secure their accounts properly. She couldn’t let that happen to her. This wasn’t just a lesson in technology—it was about her safety. Her privacy.

Suddenly, her phone buzzed again, and it wasn’t Liam this time. Maya looked at the screen and saw a new notification from the same number as before. The message read:

The Message:
"I’m watching you. I’ve got everything I need. Pay up, or it’s all gone."

Maya felt a cold chill run down her spine. This wasn’t a joke anymore. The message felt too real, too threatening. Her hands shook slightly as she set her phone down on the desk. This wasn’t just a scam. Whoever this was had access to something important.

Within minutes, Liam arrived at Maya’s house, his backpack slung over one shoulder and his laptop tucked under his arm. As soon as he stepped into Maya’s room, he saw the look of concern on her face and the open laptop sitting on her desk. He didn’t waste any time.

“Okay, let’s see what we’re dealing with,” Liam said, pulling up a chair next to Maya. He glanced at the pop-up message on her screen and then turned to Maya. “This isn’t a normal pop-up, that’s for sure. This is what’s called ransomware—a kind of malicious software that locks people out of their data until they pay the criminal behind it. The message they sent you is a typical ransom note.”

Maya’s eyes widened. “Ransomware? So, they really have my stuff? My files? My photos?”

“Maybe,” Liam said, his voice calm but serious. “Ransomware can lock up files or even steal them, depending on how it’s set up. But don’t worry, we’re not going to pay them. That’s what they want. Paying only encourages them to do it to more people.”

Maya felt a slight wave of relief. She wasn’t going to be extorted. But she also felt a nagging sense of dread. How could they have gotten access to her data?

Liam clicked around the screen, carefully avoiding any suspicious links or buttons. “We’re going to do a little investigating first. Don’t click on anything that looks suspicious, and definitely don’t pay anyone. Ransomware criminals rely on people getting scared and making hasty decisions.”

The First Step: Securing the Devices

Liam immediately started by disconnecting Maya’s computer from the internet. “First thing’s first,” he said, as he disabled the Wi-Fi connection. “We need to make sure they can’t get to you while we figure out what’s going on. If they have access to your computer, we don’t want them sending anything else to your device.”

Liam then opened a new browser window and began looking up ways to check for ransomware. He advised Maya to check for anything unusual—files she didn’t recognize, new software she didn’t install, or strange programs running in the background. While Maya scanned through her files, Liam checked her cloud storage account, where Maya saved most of her important school projects and family photos. He needed to make sure nothing had been deleted or locked.

Maya checked the storage for anything out of the ordinary, and for the first time, she felt her anxiety lessen. So far, her cloud account appeared safe—nothing looked different. Still, she wasn’t sure if this was over.

The Next Step: Finding the Source

After some more searching, Liam found something that made his eyes narrow. "It looks like this is a phishing attempt. The pop-up isn’t just a message—it’s a way to get you to click on a link or download something that’ll give them access to your personal files."

Liam pulled up a new tool on his laptop to trace the origin of the message. "We’re going to find out where this came from. We’ll figure out who’s behind it, and maybe we can stop them before they target anyone else."

Maya sat back, feeling a little more at ease, but she knew this wasn’t over. The digital world was vast, and not everyone online had good intentions. This was just the beginning. There was still so much to uncover, and the mystery was only deepening.

As Liam worked, Maya couldn’t help but wonder—Who was behind this attack? And why her?

End of Part 2

In Part 3, Maya and Liam will uncover more about the digital criminal behind the threats and start taking serious steps to secure their information. They'll learn about phishing and the tricks criminals use to steal personal data, setting the stage for the next part of their investigation.