You must have heard the term ransomware emerge & frequently pop up in conversations over the past few years while talking about IT services near me. This once-rare tactic is increasingly becoming the standard functioning method for clever hackers. The hackers use this method for the obvious reasons – it brings in more money.

Ransomware is malware that poses security risks to a person’s details by employing encryption. The antisocial elements use it to encrypt a user or organisation’s sensitive information, resulting in the said firm’s inability to access documents, databases, or applications. The hackers offer the access in return for a hefty payoff. It is a potentially fatal threat to a company. It is forced to pay billions of dollars to cybercriminals and faces considerable damage and expenses for businesses and governmental organisations.  

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Why Should a Company Feel Threatened by this Phenomenon?

Various research conducted all around the globe found a more than 50% increase in attacks from the end quarter of 2020 to the second quarter of 2021 in the American & Australian IT companies near me. Unfortunately, the attacks aimed at the firms also affect their customers who procure products and services, as business data includes their sensitive personal & financial details. This data could be of any customer who has conducted business in the past with your company.  

What to Do When Hit by an Attack?

When an organisation is hit with a ransomware attack, the typical procedure is to swiftly report the incident, even though it may take much longer to thoroughly research what was impacted and how widespread the breach may have been. Once they have the required information, they may reach out to their customers via email, updates on their page, social media, or even the press to inform them about the customer details that may be at risk. The best way to know if a ransomware attack has impacted you is to focus on official communications through these multiple mediums. You can employ numerous ways to save yourself from such attacks, and we have provided a few tips in the coming paragraphs.

Methods to Prevent Ransomware to Damage your Organisation

Ensure Proper Data Backup

When you feel a malicious program attacks you, the primary step is to immediately prevent its spread by swiftly removing any affected gadgets or devices from your system. You cannot access or move your files anywhere due to the attack on your documents. Therefore, ensuring proper data backup mechanisms is always prudent by creating a copy of the said documents on an external hard drive and the cloud. This way, if you indeed get attacked by ransomware, you can fully clean your system or device and reset your documents from backup files. Backups safeguard your info, and you won’t be tempted to fulfil the malware perpetrator’s wish by paying a ransom. It would help to remember that backups wouldn’t prevent ransomware but mitigate the risks. You could reach out to Coweso – one of the top firms offering IT consulting in Sydney – for assistance in such matters.

Update your User Credentials

You may find that the organisation you have conducted your business with and engaged on many levels has become a victim of leaked information or an attack from cyber terrorists. In such a scenario, take swift action and update your password & other user credentials for all your businesses. And while you’re completing this job, go the extra mile and create passwords that are seriously hard to crack with this next tip.

Make your Staff Aware of Cyber Safety

Another crucial tip is to teach the employees about cybersecurity. You can trace most instances of ransomware to an employee who has done an innocuous task like clicking on an email from an unknown person or downloading a file online that is not work-related. To prevent employees from committing such and potentially fatal mistakes, you must educate them on cybersecurity and, more specifically, ransomware prevention. Employees should be taught to recognise phishing attempts, which have evolved significantly since the days of African princes demanding small up-front payments in return for a considerable sum of money at a later point. The staff must understand the severity of their actions and be taught how to handle them. Otherwise, they would treat cybersecurity as insignificant and need to devote more time to employing it. You can conduct mock cybersecurity drills to accomplish this goal and collaborate with a company providing managed IT services in Sydney, such as Coweso.

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Employ Available Patches to Fill Known Security Gaps

Most cyber criminals use phishing attacks to profit and not display their hacking talent. That’s why they always search for the most straightforward method to grab their victim’s details. They realise there’s nothing easier than taking the opportunity of an unpatched susceptibility. One of the instances is the susceptibility that made it feasible for cyber terrorists to successfully target US-based hospitality industries with the Epsilon Red program. Setting up devices can be a real challenge when employees work from their homes, using a mix of personal and work devices. Fortunately, patch management solutions can be arranged across corporate-owned gadgets and bring-your-own devices and employed to monitor and update all software running on them.

Never Underestimate the Aspect of Password Security

Another step to ensure being saved from the attacks is to provide solid & unique passcodes while upgrading your credentials with the help of tech companies by searching IT companies near me. Many customers mistake using the same password or a slightly modified variant to handle all their accounts. Therefore, create separate passcodes for each account to ensure that hackers cannot access all your reports simultaneously, even if one password is compromised. You can adequately monitor your credentials using a password manager and generate secure login keys.

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Secure Devices Using Two or Multi-Step Authentication

Two or multi-step verification requires multiple verification credentials and provides an extra layer of safety. For example, you’ll be asked to verify your identity through another gadget, such as a phone. This feature decreases the risk of successful impersonation by hackers.

Insist on Not Paying the Ransom

While large organisations often fall prey to such attacks, you can also be targeted by a ransomware operation. Make it clear not to pay the ransom if such a thing happens. Although you may suppose this is the only method to get your saved and secured files back, there is no sure-shot way to confirm that the ransomware designers will allow the decryption tool once they get the desired payment. Paying the money also leads to the growth of more such organisations. Therefore, it’s best to hold off on spending any money. You can also get advice from leading firms providing IT consulting in Sydney.

Try to Browse Safely on the Web

When browsing websites, you need to be mindful of where you click. Don’t reply to emails and text notifications from people you don’t know; only download software from reliable sources. This feature is essential since malware authors often use online social tools to get you to install hazardous documents. Using a safety extension on your web browser is one way to browse more safely.