Majority of Companies Experience Ransomware

In a 2021 report done by ThycoticCentrify, they gathered some sobering statistics. They surveyed 300 US IT business decision-makers and found the following:

• 64% of companies were victims of a ransomware attack in the last year (October 2020-2021).
• 50% of survey respondents said their company had “experienced a loss of revenue and reputational damage from an attack.”
• 42% of the 300 companies lost customers because of it.
• One-third of attacks led to employee layoffs.
• 83% of victims paid the ransom.

It is unfortunate that a large majority of the victims felt there was no option other than to pay the ransom. As an IT support company, we come alongside companies (with or without an IT staff person/department) and provide guidance through business decisions such as these. Thankfully, we also have adequate, preventative tools.

The report stated the most vulnerable entry points are (1) email, (2) applications, and (3) the Cloud. They suggest zero-trust methods such as (4) secure privileged access and (5) multi-factor authentication as solutions to avoid attacks. Our Security Package launched this year and addresses all of that (and much more)!

(1) We utilize 24/7 AI-based email monitoring and anti-spam for your Outlook365 to combat phishing, spear-phishing, intruders & imposters, and bad links. We also monitor your email backups to the Cloud, as well as block employees from getting on their personal email whilst at work.

(2) We manage and research updates for third-party software, which often improves security, and disallows unstable updates. We also require an admin login to download new applications and scan for bad downloads via the Internet.

(3) We manage your on-site and/or (oftentimes both) Cloud backups for you. We also manage and secure Microsoft-related services put on the Cloud. Lastly, we block file-sharing websites.

(4)  We lock up the backups with separate credentials. We can separate corporate data from personal data on employee cell phones. We don’t allow users to be admins on the network or workstations, nor grant them access to share drives they don’t need for their job.

(5) We provide a password manager that implements two-factor authentication with ease, as well as generates strong passwords for you. Our best practices also include utilizing multi-factor authentication wherever possible and not using SMS for said authentication when possible. (Wondering why? Read this.) We notify you immediately if one of your employee’s login credentials were part of a data breach, prompting them to change their login. We also offer mobile phone confirmation when logging in to workstations.

Unfortunately, attacks can still happen, but hope is not lost. Even when someone has gotten into your network, we are able to fight them off and prevent further damage. Additionally, our 30 years of expertise and optional cyber insurance help you navigate the hardship that is ransom. 279 of the 300 companies discussed earlier are allocating a special budget to fight ransomware threats. It’s time you do too. Thankfully, we have multiple membership levels and two versions of the Security Package to ensure we find the best fit for your budget and security needs. We said it in June and Thycotic Centrify’s research backs it up: “…ransomware is a threat to organizations of all sizes and levels of sophistication.”

To learn what ELSE our Security Package entails, contact us today to get started!