What is Ransomware?
Ransomware: you hear this term so much that it’s probably lost the scare factor we all associated with it at first. However, Ransomware becomes a bigger and bigger threat every day. The National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) defines Ransomware as a malicious software that encrypts a computer system’s data and demands payment to restore access. NIST recommends a few key things to help prevent an attack or to help recover from one: use antivirus software, keep all computers fully patched, use security products, only allow authorized applications to run on computers, and restrict use of personally owned devices on your organization’s network. You’ve also probably heard all this advice before, so why do MSSP’s continue to talk about it and make it out to be such a huge deal? Because it can cripple your organization within seconds, and it will force you to pay.
What Happens When Your Organization Gets Hit?
When your organization gets hit with Ransomware, it’s not as simple as waiting it out, paying the bill, and moving on. The average downtime for a company hit with a Ransomware attack is about two to four weeks. However, times very widely and are dependent on your recovery team’s experience with these kinds of attacks, your IT Security tool set, and when your organization caught the attack. In most cases, organizations that get hit with a Ransomware are experiencing their first major cybercrime attack. Due to the inexperience of dealing with a large-scale cyber-attack, so much time can be lost just simply trying to figure out what to do. Every second is valuable in these cases, and the longer it takes to recover your data, the more hoops you’ll need to jump through.
According to Jérôme Marchandiau, the Director of IT Operations for Manutan, a large office equipment distributor headquartered in France that got attacked by Ransomware in February of 2021, the biggest impact is on the staff. He said, “The psychological impact is the most terrible thing – nothing works,” he says. “It is like there has been a fire, but without the destruction of any physical property. It’s incomprehensible – 2,400 people found themselves unable to work overnight, not knowing when they will return to work, or even if they will return,” in an article published by ComputerWeekly.com. The article goes on to say that as they tried to work with Microsoft to fix the issue and recover their data, Microsoft was hesitant to assist. The ComputerWeekly.com article quotes Marchandiau as saying, “We protested [but] they told us that none of this would have happened if we had updated their systems regularly. But with them, the updates come every week! How do they want us to update 800 servers ever week? The effort needed is colossal – it is completely inconsistent!”
How Can Pioneer-360 Help?
MSSP’s continue to stress the importance of antivirus, patching, Microsoft Patching, Third-Party Patching, Zero Trust and more because when Ransomware comes knocking on your door, you need to be prepared or you risk paying far more than just the ransom fee. Pioneer-360 has a remote program that provides patching, vulnerability scanning, and remediation starting at just $35 per seat. Our PVR Program can take your network security to the next level and will help prevent cybercrime. Don’t be forced to pay the price, let the SOC2 Type II Certified Security Experts handle your network’s security and compliance and let your internal team get back to innovation and keeping your organization running smoothly.
