Why Backups are Critical in Fighting Ransomware

Ransomware – usually Crypto Locker and its variants – is a form of cyber-malware based on encryption software that seeks payment (ransom) to undo the damage; when infected, the malware typically encrypts all data files, rendering them useless until the ransom is paid.  (Encryption software scrambles a files’ contents and creates an encryption key, essentially a code used to reverse the process.  Unless you have this key and the encryption software, the files remain unreadable.)

Recently, hospitals and police departments have become victims of ransomware.  Hollywood Presbyterian Medical Center was forced to pay a $17,000 ransom in bitcoin to regain control of their computer systems and after repeated attempts to decrypt their data, the Tewksbury Police Department was forced to pay the $500 ransom.

Other than paying the ransom, which is risky and not recommended since it potentially makes you more of a target in the future, the only way to thwart ransomware is by restoring the corrupted files through a backup that was created before the infection.

A properly planned and implemented backup process is vital since data stored on a network server represents many hours of effort over time, making it impractical and usually impossible to recreate.  A properly functioning, multi-point-in-time backup is necessary to provide restoration under these and other scenarios:

  • A server fails
  • A file is deleted
  • A template is written over
  • An application upgrade fails and must be restored
  • A document is inadvertently changed and saved by a user

A backup should be a complete, recoverable copy of not just data, but the entire server/network environment.  It should have these properties:

  • Sequenced over many days
  • Complete image
  • Offsite storage

If you’re ready to get serious about protecting your business data, select a talented Managed IT Services/Managed Cloud Services company, like Bryley Systems, to help you double-check your IT infrastructure, recommend solutions to eliminate weak links in your security chain, and help you develop an organization-wide policy to help prevent data loss. Please contact us at 978.562.6077 or by email at ITExperts@Bryley.com. We’re here to help.