To prevent cyber extortionists, you should consider the following measures:
Do not install any pirated software in your car.
1. Pirated software could be infected with malware.
2. Pirated software could be used to collect private data from your connected car for selling to cybercriminals.
3. You should always use original software in your connected car.
Do not use pirated music, movies, and e-books in your infotainment system in the car.
You should always buy original music, movies, and e-books from legal sources so that you can enjoy the full features of your car infotainment system without any worries about cyberattacks on it.
Keep the firewall of your vehicle on.
Keep your vehicle firewall turned on so that any unauthorized access to your connected car is blocked by it automatically before the cyber attackers can launch their malicious attacks on them from outside of your vehicle network.
Have a good antivirus program.
Install a good antivirus program on all of your devices at home and work, if you want to protect yourself from malware infections that can spread from one connected device to another connected device via the Internet without your permission or knowledge.
Install all the security updates.
Keep all of your connected devices patched with the latest security updates. Perhaps for eliminating zero-day vulnerabilities that exist in them; before the hackers can exploit them for launching their cyberattacks on them with dangerous consequences for you and other people who use those devices as well as those who rely on those devices for doing their business transactions on the Internet safely and securely with peace of mind.
Use a VPN.
Consider installing a firewall as well as a virtual private network (VPN) server. For instance, on all of your network-attached storage (NAS) devices at home and at work. So that you can protect all of your data stored on those NAS devices from being stolen by hackers.
These hackers might gain physical access to those NAS devices. For example, by breaking into your home or office buildings or stealing those NAS devices from you.
Conclusion
The cyber attackers will continue to develop new computer viruses, trojan horses, spyware, ransomware, and other types of malware to target all types of connected devices to steal your data and extort money from you.
So, you should protect yourself from cyber extortionists by installing a firewall on all of your homes and work computers. Buying original software for all of your devices. Installing a good antivirus program on all of your devices. Keeping the firewall turned on. Using a VPN server at home and work. Use a virtual private network (VPN) service when you are using the Internet in public places.
