Different IT professionals might not agree about everything,
but we all hate ransomware. We hope you’re not too familiar with this
particular type of malicious software, but you have probably heard about it or
seen in on the news. It usually involves computers and workstations being
locked behind encryption until a payment is made to an anonymous third-party.
Hence the “ransom” part of the name.
While everyone but hackers hates ransomware, it’s clear that
the trend isn’t going away anytime soon. Already in 2018 we’ve seen the SamSam
attack affect thousands of organizations, including hospitals and governmental
agencies.
Should you worry about something similar happening to you?
How can you prevent your company from being held hostage for tens of thousands
of dollars? Can you even prevent these attacks at all?
To help you get the answers you need, let’s look at four
things you need to know about ransomware…
#1 The Best Cure for
Ransomware is to Avoid It
This might seem obvious, but it’s important to mention. The
best way to deal with a ransomware attack is to not endure one in the first
place. Often, businesses are affected through suspicious attachments, unknown
downloads, or employee visits to unsafe websites.
With a little bit of training and the right virus protection
tools in place you can cut out the most significant risks. This will also help
protect you from phishing scams, data breaches, and the other kinds of
IT-related headaches that keep you up at night.
#2 It’s Not a Great
Idea to Pay the Ransom
Assuming you are
affected by ransomware, it's generally not that wise to pay the requested fee
(which hackers will typically want in untraceable crypto currencies). After
all, if you give up money now, what’s to stop a criminal for asking for more
later? They already know you’ll pay.
Also, paying a ransom for access to your files just papers
over the problems instead of putting better longer-term solutions in place.
#3 A Good IT Team Can
Sometimes Beat Ransomware Easily
There are a lot of factors that determine how severe a
ransomware infection is. These include the specific software being used, the
number of devices affected, etc. It’s easy to understand why some targets
(including the hospital we already mentioned) choose to spend money rather than
wait for a fix.
However, if you have a good IT team working on your side
they may be able to brush off a ransomware attack by using standard virus
removal techniques or restoring an old backup. These are simple and cost-effective
steps that might resolve the problem very quickly.
#4 Ransomware
Infections Can Be a Sign of Bigger Problems
As a rule of thumb, having a ransomware infection suggests –
at the very least – that a review of training procedures and web security
software is in order. As we mentioned, these types of issues normally don’t
come out of nowhere. Instead, they usually suggest an organization isn’t paying
enough attention.
No matter what the outcome, it’s important to learn from a
ransomware attack and come through the process a little bit stronger and wiser.
Otherwise, the damage could be even worse the next time around.
Is Your Business or
Organization Properly Protected From Ransomware?
If you worry that your company or agency doesn’t have the right
kinds of data protection and cybersecurity tools and procedures in place then
don’t wait for something bad to happen. Call the experts at Kinetik IT in
Phoenix today so we can assess your technology and start taking steps to keep
you covered.