Business Forecast: 56% Chance of Ransomware

The third annual 2020 Global Security Attitude Survey by CrowdStrike revealed that 56% of businesses experienced a ransomware attack within the past year.

The report, commissioned by CrowdStrike and conducted by independent research firm Vanson Bourne, surveyed 2,200 senior-level IT decision makers and IT security experts in various countries, including the U.S., U.K., France, Germany, Spain, Italy, Netherlands, the Middle East, India, Japan, Singapore and Australia. The interviews were conducted in August and September, 2020. 

About 56% of those surveyed say their companies have experienced a ransomware attack over the past 12 months. Those companies paid an average of $1.1 million for a ransom in order to get information released.

A June report by Gartner warned of similar threat risks, with ransomware growing as an emerging threat and phishing, business email compromise and used more frequently in malware attacks. The report also indicated that corporate employees were using vulnerable home-based and public networks.

Last month, a Gartner analyst said that 18% of Gartner customers plan to change their security budgets mid-cycle in in response to major changes in their business.

What Can You Do?

Fortunately, the risk can be mitigated by taking several steps, as described in greater detail on the Cybersecurity & Infrastructure Security Agency website.

  • Patch your computers, network appliances and all other devices on your network. These take place in the form of updates and firmware upgrades. Always install updates from a trusted source with a digital certificate to verify it has not been tampered with.
  • Use caution when opening email attachments. Even if the sender is someone you know, keep in mind they could have been hacked and are unaware their email is being used. Be wary of attachments, especially when they are compressed or ZIP files, as these can bypass simple firewalls.
  • Use caution when visiting websites from browser search results and from links in emails. Hover over the link before clicking it to see a preview of the URL in the bottom left corner of your screen. Then, perform a search result of the site and see if that is the same link. You want to look for the beginning of the URL to include https.
  • Use preventative software and hardware. Install antivirus software, implement firewalls and email filters – and frequently monitor and update them.

What to do if Infected with Ransomware?

Immediately isolate the infected device. Turn off the wireless signals from the device including Bluetooth and the wireless adapter, unplug the ethernet cord and disconnect all USB devices. Do not power off the infected device. Power off all other uninfected computers, servers, and storage devices on your network (just leave the firewall on).

Not sure where to start?

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