News of a virulent variant of Cryptoware – “Locky” – spreading like wildfire, combined with the recent high-profile attack on the Hollywood Presbyterian Medical Center in Los Angeles. According to reports in Forbes, Locky is currently affecting around 90,000 machines a day and demanding between 0.5 and 1 Bitcoin (around $400) to unlock files. But in a more sinister turn, this is a drop in the ocean compared with the $17,000 that the Hollywood Presbyterian Medical Center’s board agreed to pay to get its network back.
What is ransomware and how does it work?
There are a wide range of different variants of ransomware or Cryptoware – including CryptoLocker, Cryptowall, Cryptodefense, and the most recent Locky. However, the attack vector is pretty much always the same: an email encouraging you to open an attachment, anything from an infected word document to a .zip file.
Once you open this, the real payload will be activated and the attached programme will set to work encrypting your files. It will then flash up a message telling you that you will not be able to access your data until you pay the specified ransom.
How can you protect against and recover from ransomware?
One basic security measure that can be taken to stop ransomware from taking hold is not opening attachments from unknown senders. However, with cyber criminals becoming more sophisticated with their phishing attacks, this is increasingly difficult.
To protect against and recover from ransomware, Business's need to deploy a multi-layered approach to security (including email filtering, antivirus, patch management, and web protection) alongside a robust backup solution.
“Healthcare and other organizations can play their part in protecting against ransomware through layered security,” explains Ian Trump, LOGICnow’s Security Lead. “They can also deploy effective backup software. And, on top of this, robust disaster recovery and business continuity planning is equally important.”
How can Charger IT help you protect you business from Ransomware?
Contact our sales department at sales@chargerit.com or call 615-690-8650 for your free consultation. We provide all the essential tools to protect your business.
