The IT Experts

How Much Has Ransomware Gotten Worse?

If we are being honest here, ransomware has never been something that you should mess around with. Compared to the major hacks we see these days, the smaller attacks of yesteryear were child’s play. When your data gets encrypted by an external power, that is bad, plain and simple, but when the attacks have greater impacts on supply chains or corrupted national infrastructures, you know the issue is not getting any better.

At the end of the day, the simple truth is that the dangers that such ransomware attacks pose cannot be understated, and no business is truly safe. The White House has issued this warning to companies and continues to encourage them to take measures against ransomware and other cyberthreats.

This is Why the US Justice Department is Speaking Out

Eventually it had to come to this; there is only so much stress that a string can take before it snaps, and the White House had to draw a line somewhere. As a measure to respond to this “growing threat,” investigations into ransomware cases will be handled in much the same way that terrorism cases are, which includes a no-holds-barred approach with no limits to tools used.

Other Governing Bodies are Following Suit

In light of the JBS hack and the potential economic ramifications it could cause, the US Congress has also brought into focus the lack of federal oversight into the cybersecurity protections implemented by meat processors. If oversight were to be brought into the equation, perhaps it would be possible to build a unified strategy to keep situations like these from spiraling out of control in the future.

Ransomware Threats are Also Getting Worse

Ransomware attacks are gunning for larger, high-profile targets, which has led to a shift in strategy that should be a major cause for concern. The ideal progression of a ransomware attack, from the hacker’s perspective, is as follows:

1. Use ransomware to encrypt a targeted system
2. Threaten to delete all contents of a targeted system if a ransom isn’t paid
3. Profit

Historically, affected organizations could utilize a data backup to get around paying the ransom, which would be a relatively minor cost compared to shelling out massive sums to the attacker. Unfortunately, cybercriminals are now leveraging much different techniques that are not so easily thwarted by a data backup. Let’s take a look at how the approach has changed since:

1. Steal data from a system, using ransomware to encrypt it after the data has been harvested
2. Threaten to delete all contents of a targeted system if a ransom isn’t paid
3. Profit
4. Threaten to leak or sell the stolen data unless a second ransom is paid
5. Profit again

This double-threat approach to ransomware first made its appearance in late 2019, growing ever more popular since. One survey indicated that 77 percent of ransomware attacks threaten to leak data if the ransom is not paid, and of particular concern is that this same survey shows that attacks against SMBs—organizations that don’t have large sums of cash or resources compared to enterprise-level targets—are more common now than ever before.

The question then becomes, “If a backup won’t work, what will?”

How Your Business Can Resist Ransomware

When discussing how to protect your business from ransomware, a foundational understanding of how they begin is necessary to start the conversation. About half of ransomware attacks are made possible thanks to cybercriminals compromising systems through a remote desktop software, usually with stolen credentials or unpatched vulnerabilities. With this in mind, organizations that are serious about preventing these threats should reinforce password security and user management.

Password requirements that align with best practices, complete with two-factor authentication measures, can go a long way toward preventing unnecessary security risks. Add in a password management platform complete with identity authentication and your organization is already much better off than it otherwise would be.

It also helps to invest in a dark web monitoring service. This might sound scary, but it’s really not; it helps you know if and when passwords or data your organization utilizes are compromised or stolen. It might not be able to undo the damage done, but knowing is the first step toward resolving—and it can help you identify weak points in your infrastructure moving forward.

It’s often hard to tell just how bad particular threats will get, but there is one constant amongst all of this: hackers and cybercriminals are always looking for ways to subvert the security community’s expectations and one-up them whenever possible. To make sure you stay in-the-know regarding any updates or developing threats, give working with KB Technologies Managed IT a shot. We can help you implement the latest and greatest security solutions. To learn more, reach out to us at (954) 834-2800.

Implementation Strategy

A cloud-based model is not going to be effective if you are only implementing it because everyone else is doing it. Unless the cloud is utilized in a way that highlights the needs of your business, it is not going to be effective. A successful cloud migration begins with having a reason to establish it. Think about which processes could be improved with a move to the cloud, then start to think about making that jump.

Budget Challenges

A successful cloud implementation can save your business considerable resources through streamlined processes, lower administrative costs, and improved productivity. That said, you must consider the path toward this end result and the costs associated with implementing the cloud. To keep such a migration from hitting your budget where it hurts, you need to be prepared to handle it, which means a meticulous look at the costs of migration, monetary risks, and user training. This is not to say that the cloud’s costs outweigh the benefits--far from it, in fact--but we want to make sure you understand that there are costs that must be considered up-front before the cloud can save you money in the long term.

Security and Compliance

Some companies are, unsurprisingly, reluctant to hand over their data to any external provider like a cloud-hosting company. We understand this concern but would like to reiterate that cloud platforms are generally trustworthy. While the risk of backlash and security compliance might be enough to deter some companies from making the leap, we urge you to think of cloud providers just like any other business; their business model relies on their trustworthiness, and if they breach this in any way, everything falls apart. You can trust that they will do everything in their power to keep your data safe.

User Error

Your technology solutions are only valuable if your employees actually know how to use them. If your employees don’t know how to do so, they naturally won’t be able to do their jobs effectively, rendering the solution invaluable as a result. Even worse is when these situations place your business at risk due to incorrectly using the cloud.

The Solution: Us!

KB Technologies Managed IT understands the importance of taking a calculated approach to any new technology solution. Sometimes they can be quite complex, and the cloud is one of them. If you would rather work with a local managed service provider like KB Technologies Managed IT, we will work with you to ensure that your cloud needs are met. This includes any and all training and support your staff needs throughout this implementation process.

If you want to learn more about the cloud (and we recommend you do!), KB Technologies Managed IT can help. Reach out to us today at (954) 834-2800.

We’ll focus our attention on three technology solutions that we think all small businesses should invest in.

Email and Instant Messaging

How does your business currently host its email infrastructure? Is it hosted in-house/on-premises? Is it secured properly? Are you able to access your work email on any approved devices? How about through the cloud? If you want to optimize productivity and efficiency, your goal should be to know the answer to all of these. KB Technologies Managed IT recommends that you work with us to set up a cloud-hosted email solution so your business can maintain operations even while remote; it sure beats managing your own email server.

Instant messaging is also an excellent tool for modern businesses. You can send an email to get a response from one of your coworkers, but if you need an immediate response, this is hardly a great method of outreach. You can get more urgent responses via instant messaging. Just make sure that you train your employees on how to keep this from becoming a distraction rather than a tool for productivity.

Intranet Solutions

Imagine that you are working on a project. Progress might be going swimmingly for a while, but then it is stymied by not having access to documents or the processes involved with a specific task. This happens all too often in the business world; documents are stored in inconsistent locations, employees aren’t trained on proper processes or how to access various accounts. An intranet tool is a great way to prevent these roadblocks from becoming major issues.

An intranet solution gives your business access to a central location where internal documents can be housed, workflows can be detailed, and access to account portals or tools needed on a regular basis. You might be surprised by how much something so simple can impact your day-to-day actions.

Voice over Internet Protocol

Businesses use phones all the time for both internal and external communications, but your traditional landline is surely starting to show its age. Whenever you add a user to the network, you need to run new phone lines, hook up new hardware, assign extensions, all kinds of work. It’s safe to say that this is not sustainable for a growing business.

VoIP, on the other hand, allows your business to add new users in a much easier way. Because the system is housed in the cloud and accessed from a device or desktop, all it takes is setting up an account and downloading the appropriate app. Employees can use their work phone numbers on their personal devices, and since this solution is so scalable, there is no reason to consider a landline any longer--especially not with all major features like call forwarding, routing, conference calling, etc being available with VoIP.

If your business needs a hand with upgrading its communication infrastructure, KB Technologies Managed IT can work with you to set one up that best suits your specific needs. To learn more, reach out to us at (954) 834-2800.