All businesses — whether they are large corporations, governments, or small organizations — are always at a high risk of being attacked by hackers and cybercriminals aiming to steal your money. According to a report in 2019, cyberattacks have an increase of 235%.
Malware and phishing are some of the most common types of cyberattacks, but which could be more dangerous? The answer is Ransomware attack. Ransomware is a type of malware threat that is on the rise in the cyber world. So, no matter the size of your business, it is essential to know how to prevent your business from ransomware. But, before stopping Ransomware attacks, you need to know everything about them.
This article will teach you all there is to know about Ransom prevention. We explore what is Ransomware attack, what types of this attack are, why Ransomware is so effective, and how to protect your data from ransomware attacks.
What is Ransomware Attack?
Ransomware is one of the biggest threats that cybersecurity teams around the world are facing. This type of malware erases all data until a ransom is paid. From small teams to large enterprises and government networks, this advanced form of cyberattack targets all organizations. This alone can be damaging to a network and result in fatal loss to infrastracture.
One of the most famous examples of ransomware is the Wolverine ransomware attack. The Wolverine Solutions Group was hit by a ransomware attack in September 2018. Malware encrypted many of the files of the organization, leaving workers unable to access them.
Fortunately, forensics experts were able to decrypt and restore them on October 3. However, lots of patient data was compromised as a result of the attack.
Why is Ransomware So Effective?
Ransomware attacks can be very damaging to all types of organizations, causing loss of productivity and finances. Most obviously, the loss of data may represent hundreds of hours of work or customer data that is essential to the smooth running of your organization. Ransomware generates over $25 million in revenue for hackers each year, which shows how effective it is to extort money from organizations. Let’s take a look at a few reasons why Ransomware is so effective.
Ransomware Targets Human Weaknesses
By targeting businesses with phishing attacks, hackers can bypass traditional security technologies with ransomware. In the security infrastructure of many businesses, email is a weak point, and hackers can ruin this by using ransomware. Hackers can also target human error by using trojan horse viruses. Lack of awareness about cybersecurity threats is the major issue here. Many people are unaware of what threats look like and whether they should avoid downloading or opening files in emails. This lack of security awareness is the main reason why ransomware is spreading much more quickly than other threats.
Lack of Strong Technological Defenses
One of the main reasons why ransomware is so effective is the lack of strong technological defenses. Several companies lack the strength as far as their network defense is concerned. Thus, they fail to block these attacks since such security shields can be costly and complex to utilize. Other times, it is tough for the IT department to persuade company higher-ups to invest in strong security defense until it becomes too late.
Outdated Hardware and Software
Besides not having strong defenses against ransomware threats, many organizations also depend too heavily on outdated hardware and software. Over time, hackers discover security vulnerabilities. Technology companies often push out security updates, but many organizations have no way to verify that users are installing these updates. Apart from this, many companies rely heavily on older computers that are no longer supported and hence, they are open to vulnerabilities. This is one of the main reasons why ransomware attacks have become the most popular and disruptive threats.
How To Prevent Ransomware Attacks?
Want to prevent your data or files from being held to ransom? If yes, the best way to stop ransomware attacks is to be proactive in your security approach and ensure that you have strong protections in place before ransomware can infect your systems. Here are some tips to stop ransomware attacks.
Strong, Reputable Endpoint Antivirus Security
Having a very strong endpoint security solution is one of the most important ways to stop ransomware threats. Installing security shields on your endpoint devices will effectively impede any malware from corrupting your systems, data, or files. These solutions can protect malicious downloads and can alert users when they are visiting risky websites. As cyber criminals always try to create new pieces of malware, these systems are not guaranteed to be 100% effective. However, installing endpoint security is an essential step in strong protection against ransomware threats.
Email Security, Inside and Outside the Gateway
As ransomware threats are commonly delivered via email, email security gateway is the best way to stop these attacks. Secure email gateway technologies identify threats and block them from being delivered to users by filtering email communications with URL defenses. These gateway technologies can prevent ransomware from arriving on endpoint devices and block users from unintentionally installing ransomware onto their device.
Data Backup and Recovery
Is the ransomware successfully installed in your system? Are your data compromised? If so, you need to restore the data you need quickly and minimize the downtime to protect your organization. Besides, you can ensure your data are backed up in multiple places including in your main storage area, on lock disks, and in a cloud continuity service.
In the case of cyber attacks, the best Cloud Data Backup and Recovery platform allows businesses to recover data. This is known as an important tool for remediating against ransomware threats.
See Also: How Backup And Storage Led To Cybercrime
Don’t Let Ransomware Damage Your Organization
As you can see, ransomware is a type of malware which criminals use to steal money, and for a few years, this ransomware has been spreading quickly. So, if you don’t want to face any productivity and financial losses due to these threats in the future, you need to follow some tips. With the aforementioned information and by following the above steps, you can protect your organization against damaging ransomware attacks.
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Author: assured grc
Assured Governance Risk and Compliance is an International professional services consultancy based in the City of London, United Kingdom, Specialized in Cyber Security and Risk Management. A-GRC’s team consists of professional consultants, either employed full time or on an associate basis.
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