As you all know, ransomware attacks are on the rise and not going away. They are part of a large arsenal of hacks that take advantage of a user’s inability ‘”not to click”. You hear news reports weekly about giant corporations being hit. So are they still going after the smaller companies? You better believe it!
These attacks are one of the biggest IT concerns in this decade. It’s changing how technology works and responds. Business relies on their data more so now than any time in the past. Here are some alarming stats tallied by CyberEdge, CNN Money, Barkly and SEC.
- 61% of organizations around the world have been infected by ransomware alone
- 22% of businesses under 1000 employees stopped business operations immediately due to ransomware
- 1 in 6 organizations will experience at least 2 days of downtime because of an attack
- About 40% of organizations that actually paid the ransom got their data back (and not necessarily all of it or in a great time frame – sometimes up to a week)
- 60% of small companies that suffer a cyberattack are out of business within six months
- 31% of consumers impacted by some sort of breach have stated they will discontinue their relationship with an organization that has been breached with 65% losing full trust in that company
Ask yourself this question:
What would be the steps I take if an hour from now I couldn’t access my computer or data? And three minutes later my phone started ringing and staff started showing up at my office door with the same issue.
If your business doesn’t have a disaster scenario plan, you are walking a tightrope wire over a river of crocodiles. Even if you are fully cloud oriented and thinking you are safe, think again! You may not have full protection as hacks are reported every day through apps, software and the airwaves.
The good news is there are ways to minimalize attacks to your systems. This can be done a few ways including using proper external systems such as SPAM/Virus filters for email and firewalls that have ability to scan data in and out of your building. Other tricks include how your internal network is configured to respond if an attack gets in. But the most important one is a solid backup AND recovery plan.
Get in touch with Blue Sky IT and make some time now, before an emergency strikes, so you can have a discussion to see where improvements can be made. And one more important piece of information that often companies forget is to keep these implementations up to date! Simply implementing protections and a plan isn’t good enough anymore. It takes constant monitoring and re-evaluation just like your daily business day to day. What might work today isn’t going to necessarily be the best choice next year. Blue Sky IT can join your team but we need you to keep us up to date on what is going on with your business. That way you can help us to help you.