Ransomware attack. What can you do?

Ransomware

Ransomware[1] attacks are increasing rapidly and threatening businesses and individuals worldwide. These attacks can be extremely dangerous and can harm victims’ system, personal information, and files.  Ransomware blocks users’ access to the infected system, files and folders and requests the ransom in order to regain access. According to Security Week, when ransomware takes control of your system, you can choose from the following options, including paying the ransom, not paying the ransom, restore your data from backups or nuke and pave.[2]

What to do in case of Ransomware?

Paying the ransom and hoping for the best

Paying the ransom and hope for the best can seem a bit risky, complicated and expensive because you need to have requested cryptocurrency or convert traditional currency. In addition, there is no guarantee that cybercriminals will give you a decryption key to unlock your data. They can also only provide you with partial access and demand more ransom, and strike again in the future.

Not paying the ransom and hoping for the best

If you decide not to pay the ransom, make sure to keep the drive for future analysis and investigation. In addition, security experts can provide you with the encryption code and allow you to access you locked files. Restore data The third option is to restore your data from backups. If you have comprehensive backups stored offline and separated from the infected network.

Rebuild your IT infrastructure

If you do not have backups and refuse to pay the ransom, you will have to rebuild the entire infrastructure from zero. As you can see, once the ransomware infects your system there is not many options to choose from. In addition, neither of these four options are simple, cheap or easy. That is why you should focus on preventing ransomware attacks. So, what steps could you take in order to help prevent ransomware infections?

Patch

As you know, attackers like to exploit vulnerabilities, so make sure to institute and adhere to a solid patch-management policy. Patching is a simple and effective method which can help defend against ransomware. In addition, security experts note that it should become a regular, habitual routine.

Educate

Uneducated users are the most likely to become victims of ransomware. As you may have noticed, more and more organizations are requiring their employees to attend cyber security-awareness courses and training programs. It is worth to mention that the education should be ongoing. Employees also should be looking for signs of cyber threats and check all sources before opening email attachments, clicking URL links or downloading software. Block In order to stop an infection in progress before a second-level downloader could be executed make sure to put blocks

Reliable antivirus protection

You are probably aware of antivirus and Internet security systems and protecting your system against various types of malware. In addition, do not forget ransomware protection and choose a security software which includes anti-ransomware features. We hope that this information will help you to prevent ransomware attacks, either you are a business owner or home user.

About the author
Olivia Morelli
Olivia Morelli - Senior Media writer

Olivia Morelli is a senior media writer on Reviewedbypro.com. Her favorite topic to write about is ransomware attacks and how to deal with them, but she also enjoys covering the topics of other types of malware and VPNs.

Contact Olivia Morelli
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