Ransomware attacks are becoming more and more frequent in today’s business world. This form of virus first started attacking businesses back in 2012. Since then the perpetrators have been finding new and inventive ways to get you to part with your money.
For those that are not familiar with this scam hackers get into your system, lock you out of all of your data and then demand cash to release the data back to you. This type of virus is an absolute nightmare but it doesn’t have to result in you forking over any money for your data.
Prevention
First of all be aware of any unusual emails you receive with attachments. A very popular one is an email from your bank. These can sometimes look legit but most of them are a way of infecting your machine. The virus is contained within the attachment and once you open it this is it’s gateway to get in. Your bank should never email you with attachments so the best thing to do if you get these emails is to not open the attachments and delete the email right away. Emails from random addresses are another one to be aware of.
Try and refrain from having any dormant or old user accounts on your server. Once a person leaves your organisation make sure their user account is either deleted or replaced by a new employee. These inactive accounts are perfect for hackers to break in to. Once in they can then infect the whole system and bring your business to a standstill. It is also good practice to change your passwords on a regular basis.
Another way of combatting this nasty virus is to have multiple levels of security. The first one being antivirus on all of your machines. This should alert you of any unusual activity on your system and stop most viruses in their tracks. Firewalls are another layer of security that can be implemented. A firewall acts as a barrier for your network against other untrusted networks like the internet. A policy can be put in place that only a certain criteria of traffic can be allowed on your network.
Been A Victim?
If you do happen to contract this virus then it is not the end of the world. One way to combat it is to take regular backups of your data. If the virus takes control of your data you can simply wipe your machines and build them back up again with the restored data. The best form of backups is to have an automated offsite backup in place. This way you don’t have to worry about remembering to backup your data. It is done for you every day. This will provide some piece of mind.
The main thing to do if you think you have caught this type of virus is don’t panic. If you have a strong backup policy in place everything should be fine. If you feel you aren’t fully protected then it is probably a good idea to speak with your IT support provider and they will be able to supply a suitable solution.