What is ransomware?
Ransomware is a type of malware that is installed on a computer, restricting and infecting the device, demanding that the user pay a ransom to the malware operators to remove the restriction. Ransomware is hostile and can spread to your server and all the computers on your network, quickly and without your knowledge. Even if you have antivirus protection on your machine this may not be enough to keep your devices and data safe from ransomware. Antivirus software is always one step behind in terms of your protection. They can only protect you from known malware and predictable variants. While they do try and predict and protect you from viruses yet to be released, they are not perfect and should not be your only line of defence against malware.
How does this impact you?
If you run a small to medium sized business, you may be thinking that you are not a target for ransomware, that these malware operators won’t bother going after such small organizations. In reality, small businesses make perfect targets for these kinds of attacks as they often have little in the way of protection and backups. “Small business is classically unprepared to deal with ransomware”, says Bill Hughes, Managing Director of Weehooey. Small businesses do not have the resources to withstand their business being halted, and so they often settle and pay the ransom so they can keep their lights on and doors open.
Finding and prosecuting those operating these malware attacks is virtually impossible. Anyone can purchase this malware. It is monetized, building momentum, easily accessible, and can quickly be used to encrypt network drives. It is hard to remove and untraceable.
According to Hughes, “2016 will be the year of ransomware”. Make sure you business is prepared and protected for a potential ransomware attack. Your best defence is thorough, secure, and frequent backups of all of your company’s data. If you have a complete backup, pre-ransomware install, you can restore your data easily, and the malware operators no longer have leverage. Backups need to be cloud based, as traditional external hard drives can fail, deteriorate, or be compromised.
How to protect yourself
Protecting your small to medium sized business through knowledge and more frequent and thorough backups can help immunize you from ransomware attacks and keep your business running.