The Super Bowl of Cybercrime: Ransomware vs. Unitrends

Before you get comfy with your fried corn dogs and chili cheese nachos, you need to get one thing straight. When mapping out that big game strategy for your business growth, keep in mind that with the sharp rise in ransomware in recent times, the odds are well and truly stacked against you.

Ransomware criminals haven’t just kicked off and gained a few yards on you. They are going on the offensive and aiming straight for the end zone. In 2020 alone, ransom payments jumped 31 percent to $233,817. These criminals don’t believe in timeouts or lines of scrimmage. Their game plan is to make a direct beeline for the most lucrative targets, no matter the cost.

Ransomware: The Winning Dirty Plays

The COVID-19 pandemic allowed malware mercenaries to drive sophisticated offensive plays that exploited vulnerabilities exposed by rookie remote employees working on networks devoid of company firewalls and other safety measures.

Cybercriminals have no qualms about playing dirty. The fact that over 560 healthcare companies and hospitals were hit by ransomware during a global pandemic is testament to this.

If you’re wondering which ransomware attack racked up the best season numbers, that would be the Sodinokibi ransomware. It exploits an Oracle WebLogic vulnerability (CVE-2019-2725) to gain access to its victim’s machine and once it’s in, it uses an Elliptic-Curve Diffie-Hellman key exchange algorithm to generate and propagate encryption keys to access and affect all files and resources on the system without restriction.

However, it’s all too obvious that the encryption and flashing red screens demanding payment in Bitcoin or other cryptocurrencies is just a play-action fake. Before launching ransom demands, it is increasingly common for criminals to take control of computer systems to slowly extract and steal IPs, which they then hold hostage and threaten to release should the victim fail to pay the ransom.

Ransomware criminals have realized such tactics can be scaled without impacting their operating cost. This lets them generate great margins at low risk, thereby giving them the upper hand.

Can You Afford a Ransomware Fumble?

Across the league, Ransomware criminals increasingly target industries that have rapidly and recently digitized their operations, such as healthcare, schools and industries like manufacturing, simply because they have a low tolerance for downtime.

Apart from the business costs caused by unplanned downtime, there are other expenses to consider. Ransomware victims end up paying penalties and legal fines in addition to having to deal with a dry revenue stream and the crippling effects on their credibility and reputation. Customers, in turn, do not want to do deal with a business that has been compromised or perceived as vulnerable.

So, the answer to whether your business can afford a ransomware fumble is a big NO! There are no chances to convert on fourth down here for you.

Beat Ransomware the Tom Brady Way

“The true competitors are the ones who always play to win.” -Tom Brady

The odds may be against you but that doesn’t mean you can’t beat them.

Remember Super Bowl LI when the Patriots were trailing 28-3 late in the third quarter and appeared doomed to lose to the dominant Falcons? Tom Brady rose to the occasion, leading the offense to five straight scoring drives, with the last touchdown giving them the 34-28 victory. The Patriots wrote their comeback story in style and now it’s time for you to write yours with the help of Unitrends.

Unitrends’ BCDR solution gives you the edge over ransomware criminals with a multi-pronged approach. Predictive analytics against your backup data help you detect an attack before it causes any real damage and Recovery Assurance testing validates backups to identify safe points of recovery. It’s time to take the game to the criminals and score the winning touchdown!

Unpleasant surprises are certainly not welcome when it comes to ransomware protection. Watch our on-demand webinar ‘Don’t Get Sacked by Ransomware’ to find out how you can ensure seamless business continuity.

MARKET-LEADING BACKUP AND RECOVERY SOLUTIONS

Discover how Unitrends can help protect your organization's sensitive data