I was contacted the other day by a client in relation to a ransomware attack that had occurred on the floor above their offices. The attack seriously impacted their server and made most of their files unusable. The demand then came for payment to restore the files.
My client was concerned at the robustness of some new software that we had recently installed on each of their computers. I was pleased to report that it was working and that whilst a related business had been subjected to this major problem his system was operating normally.
Sadly, Ransomware attacks are increasing with Australian businesses paying out millions of dollars to overcome these attacks and to restore their data. Often this money goes to criminal organisations which in turn has encouraged further attacks, creating a vicious circle.
Data breaches particularly in the financial and healthcare industries are on the rise, with tax and patient records key areas of attention for cyber criminals.
The reality is that for most businesses introducing some new software on their computers can be achieved for 50 cents a day per machine. We are using a software called Endpoint Detection and Response (EDR) which resists the attacks and replaces compromised files with pre-attack healthy versions on Microsoft Windows OS systems. Full monitoring and management of your endpoint security is available from a single dashboard.
At a time of so much global unrest it makes good business sense to implement new software that reduces the trauma of an attack, and the high downtime and ransoms so often paid by victims, to restore normality.