Ransomware: A Costly Attack

Generally, every opportunity in technological advancement is a disadvantage that many do not see coming. Ransomware is a type of malware that encrypts the victim's data or device, denying them access until they pay a disclosed amount, generally in cryptocurrency. According to PurpleSec, the number of ransomware attacks worldwide had increased by 350% in 2018. Now, businesses need to be much more proactive to avoid those financial burdens caused by cyberattacks such as ransomware. More and more criminals are looking for ways to get a big payout. 

There are a few common types of ransomware attacks against businesses, such as CryptoLocker, WannaCry, CryptoWall, and Locky; with a vast majority of profits from these attacks going through a cryptocurrency trading platform. Some of the most common methods of deploying ransomware onto a device or network are spam or phishing emails, lack of cyber security knowledge, and weak security or access management. One of the reasons that ransomware is increasing in popularity is the increased availability of ransomware for hire and ransomware kits available on the dark web for little investment. The availability of such services makes it easier for people to deploy cyber-attacks having little to no prior knowledge. 

You would think that since ransomware attacks are financially driven attacks, attackers would focus their efforts on bigger targets with more finances, but much of the time attackers go after small to medium-sized businesses; in fact, 43% of all ransomware attacks are on small to medium-sized businesses. They attack these businesses because generally, they do not have the capital to invest in better cyber security measures making them easier targets and more likely to pay the ransom to regain access to their device or network. Some of the industries that reported being targeted by ransomware in the U.S. are corporations, municipalities, healthcare, and education. 

Not only is ransomware bad for the security of the data that your business stores, but it is also bad for your bottom line. In 2020 alone, the average cost per incident was $8.1k and the average cost of ransomware-caused downtime per incident was $283k. And with downtime increasing by 200% year over year, businesses are paying 23 times more in costs incurred from the downtime than the average ransom requested in 2019. For many businesses, these kinds of attacks can make or break them as a business, so businesses today need to be proactive in their cyber security. 

It is estimated that every 11 seconds, a business falls victim to a ransomware attack. Ransomware attacks can be extremely damaging to a business whether it is costing the business time, money or damaging the trust they had built with their customers regarding the safety of their data. Attackers are becoming more cunning with their efforts to access and steal data, so it is up to businesses to make sure they are being diligent in protecting their data. But, if you do fall victim to a ransomware attack, digital forensics is there to help you get the evidence you need to try to regain some of the data and money lost from the attack.