Ransomware is a hot topic this year, one we’ve touched on in previous blog posts. And the more popular it becomes, the more it evolves and becomes a very real threat for you and your business. That’s why you need a solid ransomware plan in place, in case something malicious gets into your system.
The AFCEA recently published an article with a collection of statistics on current ransomware threats and trends. The growth in remote work has helped create more opportunities for ransomware incidents. The average ransom fee requested has increased from $5,000 to about $200,000 since 2018 and about 1 in 6,000 emails contain suspicious URLs. And ransomware disproportionately affects certain vulnerable industries, including healthcare, municipalities, and educational facilities. Businesses with newly-minted remote worker programs are also at higher risk, as ransomware has spread to mobile devices.
Here are some best practices for your ransomware plan.
Familiarize Yourself with Your Data Storage
The first thing you need to take stock of is the locations in which your data is being stored, with special attention being paid to critical or high-risk data like account numbers, for both your business accounts and your client information.
While storing your data in more than one location is a good practice, having too many different data caches only exacerbates the problem. Keep track of your data center storage, remote facilities, cloud storage and service providers. And be careful about who gets access to the data, and how they are accessing it. Many people do personal tasks on business devices, and vice versa.
Focus on Prevention
Detection and prevention measures are only as good as your emphasis on them. Your business’s cyber health depends on the protection technology and company policies you enforce.
One component of prevention includes updates and software patches. Many lists of cybersecurity tips focus on the actions of your employees with regard to passwords and keeping personal and work devices separate and protected, but many employees simply ignore or are unaware that certain software patches and device updates need to be done regularly. Encourage your team members to completely shut down their computers at the end of every workday – don’t just put them to sleep.
Recovery Readiness
Recovery readiness includes things like antivirus, antispyware, and firewall protection products. The most effective programs limit the write capabilities for the end-users, which means that even if someone intentionally or accidentally downloads a ransomware application, it isn’t able to encrypt files beyond the specific user’s files.
Ransomware is making big strides through mobile devices, so it’s important to keep an accurate inventory of the programs and devices that you and your teams are using.
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Contact us today to learn more.