How to Prevent Corporate Ransomware?

Ransomware Attack

Ransomware is a dangerous form of malware that can end up costing your company millions of dollars and valuable time. It’s important in our cyber day and age to understand what ransomware is and how to prevent it.

What is Corporate Ransomware?

Ransomware is a form of malware used by hackers that takes control of your business’s system to extort money from companies and other organizations. This seizure only stops after a ransom is paid. This can affect your company’s internal affairs and your customers’ interactions with your company through customer-facing applications and portals.

In many cases, ransomware cannot be removed from the system without first paying the ransom. Most ransomware encryptions are progressive algorithms, which means they evolve to be more advanced and are then harder to overcome. If you attempt to reset your system to its factory settings, it may mean the loss of valuable data if you don’t have a backup strategy in place.

Corporate ransomware may specifically refer to ransomware that targets larger corporations (we’ll discuss examples in the next section).

In most cases, ransomware cannot be removed from a system without paying the ransom. Many ransomware encryptions are progressive algorithms, meaning they evolve to be more advanced and therefore more difficult to overcome. An attempt to reset your system to factory settings may mean the loss of valuable data if you don’t have a backup strategy in place.

Tips to Prevent Ransomware

As mentioned, once ransomware is in your system, it’s near impossible to get rid of without paying up. So, the best way to avoid the consequences of the attack is to prevent the attack from every happening at all. Here are a few tips that you should take to prevent a ransomware attack:

1. Keep Backups

Top priority for any ransomware prevention should be creating and maintaining regular backups for all files. If your system gets infected with ransomware, you’ll be able to wipe it knowing that you have the data necessary to continue to work the next day.

2. Hold Ransomware Security Trainings

Non-Executive employees are targeted far more often than executive employees. This is because most ransomware attack start with an employee clicking a bad link or falling for a phishing scheme. Employees simply fall for these tricks because they lack proper training.

3. Install Email Security

Email is one of the most common channels that ransomware attacks from. Your email should be set up to automatically filter out any suspicious emails to eliminate your employee’s exposure to and attacks.

4. Keep Credentials Secure

If any executives, boards, or employees credentials are compromised, you could be at risk. The best way to tell if credentials have been exposed is to conduct a exposure risk assessment. This will scan the web to see if your information has been harvested.

Don’t Wait

There are several ways to prevent ransomware, there’s only way to get out of it. It’s better to be cautious than to pay for mistakes later on when it comes to essential company information.

Mark Funk
Mark Funk is an experienced information security specialist who works with enterprises to mature and improve their enterprise security programs. Previously, he worked as a security news reporter.