Ransomware: The Most Popular Cyber Weapon Today

Evolving Ransomware Protection

Outmaneuver
the cleverest
ransomware attacks

Impact of Ransomware on Businesses What is ransomware costing defenders?

The
Targets

By the end of 2019, businesses will fall victim to ransomware every 14 seconds.
Cybersecurity Ventures, “Global Ransomware Damage Costs Predicted To Hit $11.5 Billion By 2019,” November 2017
Monetary Cost

$11.5 billion global ransomware damages predicted annually by 2019.
Cybersecurity Ventures, “Global Ransomware Damage Costs Predicted To Hit $11.5 Billion By 2019,” November 2017
Rise
of Attacks

Self-propagating network-based ransomware cryptoworms eliminate the need for the human element in launching ransomware campaigns.
Cisco 2018 Annual Cybersecurity Report, p.6
Rapid Spread

Supply chain attacks are increasing in velocity and complexity. Nyetya was installed on more than 1 million computers. Often via automated software updates.
Cisco 2018 Annual Cybersecurity Report, p.7
Hostage Situation

WannaCry emerged and spread like wildfire across the internet with an estimation of 312 ransoms paid concealing its true purpose: wiping data.
Player 3 Has Entered the Game: Say Hello to ‘WannaCry,’ Cisco Talos blog, May 2017: blog.talosintelligence.com/2017/05/wannacry.html.

Cisco 2018 Annual Cybersecurity Report Overview

Is your organization at risk? Don't let ransomware sidetrack your business
The following cybersecurity issues can lead to an attack:

Lack of patch
management

Ineffective
malware prevention

No backup and recovery
system in place

In recent years, ransomware attacks have been successful against many types of organizations. Unfortunately, a lot of organizations and individuals have chosen to pay a ransom in order to have their files restored. As a result, ransomware has quickly become the most successful revenue-generating type of malware for cybercriminals. Considering the rapid rise and impact of ransomware as a business disruptor, organizations need to rethink their security strategy before it is too late.

Source: Frost & Sullivan infographic - Ransomware: The pervasive business disruptor

Manage Risk with Cybersecurity and Insurance

Explore the Four You Shouldn’t Ignore

Following are key takeaways to consider in building a defense strategy that not only combats ransomware, but also results in a resilient security posture towards any type of attack.

DNS-level security
Email Security
Malware Protection for Endpoints
Incident Response Plans

The Internet doesn’t work without the Domain Name System (DNS), and neither does most ransomware. Do you have the ability to quickly block user access to bad sites? Do you have this control regardless if users are on or off the corporate network?

Unfortunately, email is the most common entry point for malware. Hackers lace emails with harmful links and attachments. Do you have a system in place that will block malicious links, attachments, spoofing, and phishing so that your users don’t even see them?

Attackers get stealthier by the day and new variants of ransomware can appear. What happens when something actually gets through one of your endpoints? Can you spot it? Can you stop it and get rid of it? How do you know everything is resolved?

Of course, you can’t begin restoring anything until after you’ve resolved the cause. Do you know what to do during critical moments after detecting an attack? How will you respond to quickly contain the damage? Without a solid response plan, a ransomware outbreak will cause chaos.

Keeping Ransomware at Bay

Ransomware can infiltrate organizations in multiple ways. It is complex, evolving, and expanding. Hackers are constantly refining their strategies, so you need to fight it in all the places where it will try to get in.

What's keeping you up at night?

Ransomware impacting your business

The University of Kansas Hospital explains how Cisco Umbrella helps its security team fight ransomware and keep patient and research data secure.
Securing sensitive customer data

Yelp explains how it strengthened its security posture to more effectively respond to malware and ransomware.
Intellectual property
theft

George Washington University discusses how it protects critical intellectual property with Cisco.
Fighting infinite security challenges with finite resources

Octapharma reveals how it bolstered security against ransomware and other threats without impacting network performance.

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Webinar on Demand

Ransomware Defense: The Threat is Real
In this on-demand webinar you’ll learn how to:

Identify the main attack vectors that enable ransomware attacks to succeed Extend your key security controls beyond patching and backup/restore capabilities Protect your network from the DNS layer to email to the endpoint with Cisco Ransomware Defense.

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