I just want to help get the word out that this is a scam. Don't be fooled into paying the ransom. I know you are saying you would never be fooled by something like this but some have been.
One piece of advice. There are malware detections programs out there that will clean this virus. I honestly think that is a bad idea. They may very well clear the symptoms of the virus but how do you know that everything was removed. What if the virus installed a keylogger or other bad stuff that the malware tool overlooks. It's just not worth the risk in my opinion. The only completely safe way to remove a virus is to reformat and re-image the drive.
Back up your important stuff before you lose it. Do you have photos or other important information that you would hate to lose on your computer? If you do not have a backup you will eventually lose them. You need an easy backup strategy. I use a free program named Cobien Backup. It has worked well for me but there are many others. Just make sure you have some type of backup.
Sorry for the non-scroll saw related post.
