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ansomware RANSOMWARE ON THE RAMPAGE WITH 24% OF BUSINESSES IDENTIFIED IN RECENT RESEARCH AS HAVING BEEN VICTIMS TO AN ATTACK, THE OMENS FOR THE YEAR AHEAD LOOK WORRYING. HOW CAN THEY START FIGHTING BACK? Nearly a quarter of businesses have suffered a ransomware attack, with a fifth occurring in the past 12 months, according to an annual report from cybersecurity specialist Hornetsecurity. The company's 2022 Ransomware Report, which surveyed more than 2,000 IT leaders, discloses that 24% have been victims of a ransomware attack, with one in five (20%) attacks happening in the last year. Cyberattacks are certainly happening on a very wide scale with ever-increasing frequency. Last year's ransomware survey by Hornetsecurity revealed one in five (21%) companies experienced an attack; this year, it rose by 3% to 24%. "Attacks on businesses are increasing, and there is a shocking lack of awareness and preparation by IT pros," states Hornetsecurity CEO Daniel Hofmann. "Our survey shows that many in the IT community have a false sense of security. As bad actors develop new techniques, companies like ours have to do what it takes to come out ahead and protect businesses around the world." The 2022 Ransomware Report highlights a lack of knowledge on the security available to businesses. For example, a quarter (25%) of IT professionals either don't know or don't think that Microsoft 365 data can be impacted by a ransomware attack. Just as worryingly, 40% of IT professionals that use Microsoft 365 in their organisation admitted they do not have a recovery plan, should their Microsoft 365 data be compromised by a ransomware attack. "Microsoft 365 is vulnerable to phishing attacks and ransomware attacks, but, with the help of third-party tools, IT admins can back up their Microsoft 365 data securely and protect themselves from such attacks," adds Hofmann. Industry responses showed the widespread lack of preparedness from IT professionals and businesses. There has been an increase in businesses not having a disaster recovery plan in place, if they do succumb to the heightened threat of a cyberattack. In 2021, 16% of respondents reported having no disaster recovery plan in place. In 2022, this grew to 19%, despite the rise in attacks. The survey also showed that more than one in five businesses (21%) that were attacked either paid up or lost data. Hackers have an incentive to run these ransomware attacks, because there's a decent chance that they'll get a payday - 7% of IT professionals whose organisations were attacked paid the ransom, while 14% admitted that they lost data to an attack. Hofmann concludes: "Interestingly, 97% of pros are moderately to extremely confident in their primary protection method, even if they don't use many of the most effective security measures available, such as immutable storage and air-gapped off-site storage. This tells us that more education is needed in the field and we're committed to this cause." You can read more at this link: hornetsecurity's ransomware attacks survey. FAST AND COST-EFFECTIVE RECOVERY Data backup alone is not enough to protect you, cautions Florian Malecki, executive vice president marketing, Arcserve. "Companies should also plan to recover data quickly and cost effectively, following a ransomware attack. With a well-thought-out recovery plan in place, you may be able to restore the exact version of a file or folder following a data loss properly and quickly." 24 computing security Nov/Dec 2022 @CSMagAndAwards www.computingsecurity.co.uk
ansomware Immutable storage should be a vital component of your backup and recovery plan to allow you to safeguard your data, even if a ransomware attack victimises you, he states. "An immutable solution continually protects your data by taking snapshots every 90 seconds. These snapshots make it possible for you to go back to specific points in time before an attack and recover entire file systems in a matter of minutes. As a result, even if an attack is successful, your information will be quickly and easily recoverable to a very recent point in time." Because your backup data is immutableyour data can't be altered in any way by ransomware - there will always be a series of recovery points, ensuring your data remains protected, argues Malecki. "This immutability can also bridge the security and the operational infrastructure teams, which have traditionally been siloed. That means these two groups can speak the same language and work together in the face of ransomware threats. "If the worst happens and you fall victim to an attack, being in control of your recovery would be highly comforting to everyone involved in your organisation. Your data protection system should be able to deliver orchestrated recovery with a single click. In a ransomware attack, you should be able to recover confidently by safely spinning up copies of physical and virtual systems onsite and offsite in minutes-not hours or days. "An ideal data protection system will also use analytics to identify frequently used data that a business should always back up and less vital data that doesn't have to be. This system gives organisations an intelligent, tiered data architecture that provides rapid access to mission-critical information." DAMAGING IMPACT Ransomware attacks are at an all-time high, with 2021 receiving the largest ransomware payout by an insurance company ($40 million, according to Matthew Woodward), and have witnessed a 94% increase from 2021 to 2022 on US healthcare organisations, states Kyle Mitchell, commercial sales director for Whitaker Brothers. "Damage from ransomware can be costly for businesses, as recovering data can be time-consuming, often costing businesses money to resolve." To avoid any possible ransomware attack, he offers practical tips on preventing malware from reaching your organisation's devices. Analyse suspicious emails for any unorthodox attachments - ransomware can find its way onto your device through suspicious emails and email attachments. "These can often be found through emails that contain strange requests for information, scaremongering tactics and uncharacteristic requests from known associates. Ensure that you read a suspicious email carefully, paying close attention to the sender. If you are unsure if the email is trustworthy, avoid opening any attachments," says Mitchell. Create regular backups of your files - "Regular backups for your organisation are ideal to bounce back from a ransomware attack and should be created offline, so that digital attackers cannot target your data." Keep systems up to date - "Making sure that systems are up to date is an effective way to close all essential security gaps that digital attackers often try to exploit." Apply an Intrusion Detection Systems (IDS) - this compares network traffic logs to signatures that identify known malicious behaviour online. Actively inspect content - you can reduce the likelihood of ransomware attacks actually reaching your devices by actively inspecting the content. "This means filtering your files to only allow file types you want to receive, blocking websites that are known to be malicious, and using signatures to block known malicious code," he adds. Train your team - an effective security awareness training programme within your organisation can be crucial in stopping ransomware attacks. NATIONAL INFRASTRUCTURE TARGETED Meanwhile, two-thirds (65%) of Critical National Infrastructure (CNI) has fallen victim to a cyberattack over the past 12 months - statistics unveiled in new research from global cybersecurity company Forcepoint. The report examines the pressure CNI cybersecurity professionals face, as they balance the rapid pursuit of digital transformation with the cyber threat landscape. "Ransomware is perceived by cybersecurity professionals to present the greatest risk to CNI organisations," says Forcepoint. "This is unsurprising, given 57% report that their organisation fell victim to a ransomware attack in the last year, of whom 72% admitted to paying the ransom." When asked what aspects of the current cybersecurity threat landscape cause CNI cybersecurity professionals to worry the most, the challenge of managing more complex security solutions was superseded only by concerns that the Russia-Ukraine war could be increasing the risk of cyberattacks. And Forcepoint further states: "The rapid digital transformation of both IT and OT [operational technology] environments is compounding the challenge that CNI cybersecurity professionals are facing. When asked about its impact on their organisation, the most cited concern was the need to secure new technologies, because they were new to the organisation, as well as being difficult to secure properly." CNI cybersecurity professionals also believe a cyberattack on CNI could lead to disruptive behaviour amongst the general public, which www.computingsecurity.co.uk @CSMagAndAwards Nov/Dec 2022 computing security 25
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Page 3 and 4: comment WHY DATA ETHICS MATTER Data
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Page 8: news Bogdan Botezatu, Bitdefender.
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Page 17 and 18: 2022 CS Awards THE 2022 WINNERS: Em
Page 20 and 21: deepfakes THE DYSTOPIAN WORLD OF DE
Page 22 and 23: data management YOU AND YOUR DATA A
Page 26 and 27: ansomware Dan Turner, Forcepoint: c
Page 28 and 29: ansomware Steve Forbes, Nominet: pa
Page 30 and 31: legislation EU CYBER RESILIENCE ACT
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Page 36 and 37: eaches MAJOR BREACH, HARSH LESSONS
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Page 40 and 41: GDPR Dan Middleton, Veeam: Business
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