Ransom: a sum of money is demanded in order for the release of goods.
Software: the programs and other operating information used by a computer.
What do you get when you combine the two? Ransomware.
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Hackers Target Municipalities and Why That’s a Problem for Your Business
On March 22, 2018, a remote-triggered ransomware called “SamSam” demanded a one-time payment of $51,000 be made to restore the city of Atlanta, Georgia’s, data. Despite an operating budget somewhere in the neighborhood of $625 million, Atlanta’s municipal leaders refused to pay the fine. The “hostage situation” has cost the city over $2 million already with an expected $9.5 million more likely to be spent restoring and re-enforcing the municipality’s network and infrastructure. This doesn’t take into account downtime and the significant amount of data lost in the hack. Whether or not you think it’s a good idea to not pay the ransom, if a whole city – especially one as large as Atlanta – can effectively be crippled by a single hack, you better believe that your business has to get serious about its cybersecurity efforts.
Protect Your Business Against Targeted Ransomware
Put yourself in the shoes of a cybercriminal. What kind of ransomware attack would you launch? Would you throw out one big attack and try to get as many victims as possible? What about a more targeted ransomware attack to get a specific company or individual? It would make sense to hit as many people as you can to get more results. But cybercriminals have shifted to smaller, targeted ransomware attacks to go after specific companies or individuals.
Bad Rabbit Ransomware Hits Eastern Europe
Another day, another ransomware attack. This time in Eastern Europe, as countries have seen establishments and infrastructure hit by an infection by the name of Bad Rabbit. Among the targets were government buildings, members of the media, and transportation centers.
5 Reminders To Protect You Against Ransomware
In many ways, the Internet still feels like an untamed wilderness. Threats to your business show up all the time, and this doesn’t even consider the powder keg that is social media. According to Cisco’s Annual Cybersecurity Report, ransomware is growing 350% on a yearly basis. That means that the number of attacks your business could run into is going to increase. Follow these five tips to make sure your company and employees are taking the right measures to staying safe online.
Ransomware And How to Avoid It
You may have come across the term ransomware recently in the news, or perhaps you noticed people using the term ransomware more frequently. So what exactly is ransomware?
Ransomware is software used by hackers to block access and encrypt files on a computer system until a ransom is paid. Individuals, hospitals, schools, government agencies, police departments, and other relatively easy targets were among the first to experience the power of ransomware, but now hackers have their eyes set on much higher stakes. Cybercriminals are now using more sophisticated versions of ransomware to infect the computer systems of major institutions. For instance, in February 2016 Presbyterian Medical Center in Los Angeles, announced they paid 40 bitcoins ($17,000) for the release of the hospital’s computer system. Once a system has been corrupted, there is little that can be done, and even when the ransom is paid, there is no guarantee the files will be decrypted. Unfortunately, the devastation of ransomware is expected to grow as this malicious malware sweeps through cyberspace preying on the vulnerable.
Update on the Latest Global Ransomware Cyber Attacks
As you may have already heard, a malicious worm known as WannaCry Ransomware swept through more than 150 countries, infecting over 200,000 vulnerable computer systems. We understand this is a major concern and have taken every precaution to ensure you are safe.
