Ransomware attacks are on the rise around the globe. You cannot turn on the news or open social media without hearing about another company hit with a cyber-attack. The attack on the oil refinery and pipeline as well as the attack on the meat processing plants are just two of the most recent. Nursing homes and healthcare centers are also showing a rising number of ransomware attacks. Protecting your company and customer data is crucial.
In the case of the oil industry, production had to be halted because the billing side was hacked, and customers could not be billed. The shutdown lasted until the 4.4-million-dollar ransom was paid and billing was back online. These companies cannot get systems back online fast enough and are left waiting to see what they can salvage after the attack is over. The costs of that ransom must be made up somewhere. According to CIO from IDG on average it costs about 1.85 million dollars in 2021 to recover from a ransomware attack.
Many may not realize how these cyber-attacks can directly have a larger negative affect on our economy. These attacks cost in the millions of dollars for companies to recover from. Cyber-attacks that lead to shutdowns in production, interruptions in supply chains, and lead to critical data being lost or stolen end up costing everyone. While the criminal remains anonymous behind a keyboard planning their next attack. So, what is the answer to this growing problem? What is out there that will protect a system from these criminal intrusions? How does a company decide the protection level they need?
In a surprising news story Monday June 7, 2021, the Department of Justice was able to track the hackers and recover 2.3 million dollars of the ransom that the oil industry paid the hackers to release their system. By tracing the crypto wallet the hackers used, the DOJ recovered 67 crypto coins, currency worth the 2.3 million dollars, or over half of the ransom paid. Government official urge anyone who is cyber Attacked to report it to them immediately so they have better odds of catching the bad guys.
Many companies have managed service provider who can monitor and take care of these threats for them, such as our staff at Davis Advanced Technologies, Inc. We offer the best in protection software and pair it with our top-notch technicians to keep your companies’ data safe and secure from these types of cyber-attacks. While there are many types of antivirus protection out there, the Sophos Intercept X Endpoint products are the go-to products for protection in our office. Other systems to help prevent ransomware attacks include the Barracuda and other firewall services. Online cloud storage, such as Carbonite is another option for companies to protect sensitive data. When properly set up and used these attacks can be prevented or their effects minimized. This in turn keeps costs down and protects sensitive data.
The Sophos Intercept X endpoint protection has features to both detect and respond to cyber-attacks, as well as deep learning to search for malware that it has never encountered before. The Intercept X endpoint protection offers managed threat response, an elite team of threat hunters and response experts who take targeted action on your behalf to stop most threats in their tracks. Synchronized security automatically shares data that allows you to stay ahead of most threats and act when needed. These features and more are what make Sophos protection products the preferred option for us.
It may be true that ransomware attacks are on the rise, but ransomware protection is also always growing and improving. From the protections for computers and servers to the device protection that can now be loaded onto smart devices that add an extra layer of protection to stop these costly attacks. The hacker criminals that perpetrate these crimes are smart, but our protection must be smarter. Sophos, Barracuda, and Carbonite are ever-evolving to include newer and better protection levels. Contact us today for more information on protecting your business.
