Ransomware Hot Line: 800-462-8800
24x7 Online Access to a Senior Ransomware Consultant
Ransomware requires time to work its way across a network. Because of this, ransomware attacks are typically unleashed on weekends and at night, when IT personnel are likely to be slower to recognize a breach and are less able to organize a quick and forceful response. The more lateral movement ransomware is able to manage within a victim's system, the longer it will require to restore core operations and damaged files and the more data can be exfiltrated to the dark web.
Progent's Ransomware Hot Line is designed to assist you to complete the urgent first step in responding to a ransomware assault by putting out the fire. Progent's remote ransomware engineers can help organizations in the Austin metro area to locate and quarantine breached devices and protect clean resources from being penetrated.
If your system has been penetrated by any version of ransomware, don't panic. Get help quickly by calling Progent's Ransomware Hot Line at 800-462-8800.
Progent's Ransomware Recovery Services Available in Austin
Modern strains of crypto-ransomware like Ryuk, Maze, Netwalker, and Egregor encrypt online data and attack any accessible backups. Data synched to the cloud can also be corrupted. For a vulnerable environment, this can make system restoration nearly impossible and basically knocks the IT system back to square one. Threat Actors (TAs), the cybercriminals behind a ransomware assault, demand a ransom fee in exchange for the decryption tools required to recover scrambled files. Ransomware attacks also try to exfiltrate files and hackers demand an extra settlement in exchange for not publishing this information or selling it. Even if you are able to restore your system to a tolerable date in time, exfiltration can be a big issue depending on the sensitivity of the downloaded data.
The restoration work after a ransomware attack involves several distinct stages, most of which can be performed in parallel if the response workgroup has enough people with the necessary experience.
- Containment: This urgent first step requires arresting the lateral spread of ransomware within your network. The more time a ransomware assault is allowed to run unchecked, the longer and more costly the restoration effort. Recognizing this, Progent keeps a round-the-clock Ransomware Hotline monitored by seasoned ransomware recovery engineers. Containment activities consist of isolating affected endpoint devices from the network to block the spread, documenting the environment, and protecting entry points.
- System continuity: This involves bringing back the network to a basic useful level of capability with the least delay. This effort is typically the top priority for the victims of the ransomware assault, who often see it as a life-or-death issue for their company. This project also requires the widest array of technical abilities that cover domain controllers, DHCP servers, physical and virtual servers, desktops, notebooks and mobile phones, databases, productivity and mission-critical apps, network topology, and safe endpoint access. Progent's ransomware recovery team uses advanced workgroup platforms to coordinate the complex recovery process. Progent appreciates the urgency of working rapidly, continuously, and in unison with a client's management and network support group to prioritize tasks and to put vital services back online as fast as feasible.
- Data restoration: The work required to restore files damaged by a ransomware attack depends on the state of the systems, the number of files that are encrypted, and what restore methods are needed. Ransomware assaults can take down pivotal databases which, if not carefully closed, might have to be reconstructed from scratch. This can apply to DNS and Active Directory databases. Exchange and Microsoft SQL Server depend on AD, and many financial and other mission-critical platforms depend on Microsoft SQL Server. Often some detective work could be required to find clean data. For instance, non-encrypted Outlook Email Offline Folder Files may exist on staff PCs and notebooks that were off line at the time of the ransomware attack.
- Setting up modern antivirus/ransomware defense: Progent's Active Security Monitoring utilizes SentinelOne's behavioral analysis technology to give small and mid-sized companies the advantages of the identical anti-virus technology used by many of the world's biggest corporations including Walmart, Visa, and NASDAQ. By providing real-time malware filtering, classification, containment, recovery and analysis in one integrated platform, Progent's Active Security Monitoring cuts TCO, streamlines management, and expedites operational continuity. SentinelOne's next-generation endpoint protection (NGEP) incorporated in ProSight Active Security Monitoring was ranked by Gartner Group as the industry's "most visionary Endpoint Protection Platform (EPP)." Progent is a certified SentinelOne Partner. Read about Progent's ProSight Active Security Monitoring (ASM) endpoint protection and ransomware defense with SentinelOne technology.
- Negotiation with the hacker Progent is experienced in negotiating ransom settlements with hackers. This calls for close co-operation with the ransomware victim and the cyber insurance carrier, if there is one. Activities include establishing the kind of ransomware involved in the assault; identifying and making contact with the hacker persona; testing decryption tool; deciding on a settlement amount with the ransomware victim and the insurance carrier; negotiating a settlement amount and schedule with the TA; checking compliance with anti-money laundering regulations; overseeing the crypto-currency disbursement to the hacker; acquiring, reviewing, and using the decryptor tool; troubleshooting decryption problems; creating a pristine environment; remapping and reconnecting drives to match precisely their pre-encryption condition; and restoring physical and virtual devices and services.
- Forensics: This process involves uncovering the ransomware assault's progress across the network from beginning to end. This audit trail of how a ransomware attack progressed within the network helps you to assess the impact and highlights shortcomings in policies or processes that need to be corrected to avoid later break-ins. Forensics entails the review of all logs, registry, GPO, Active Directory, DNS servers, routers, firewalls, schedulers, and core Windows systems to look for anomalies. Forensic analysis is typically assigned a top priority by the insurance provider. Because forensics can take time, it is essential that other important activities like operational continuity are executed concurrently. Progent maintains an extensive roster of IT and data security experts with the skills needed to carry out the work of containment, operational continuity, and data restoration without interfering with forensics.
Progent's Qualifications
Progent has provided online and on-premises IT services across the United States for over 20 years and has been awarded Microsoft's Gold Partner certification in the Datacenter and Cloud Productivity practice areas. Progent's team of SMEs includes consultants who have been awarded advanced certifications in core technology platforms such as Cisco networking, VMware, and popular Linux distros. Progent's cybersecurity experts have earned industry-recognized certifications such as CISA, CISSP, and GIAC. (Refer to certifications earned by Progent consultants). Progent also offers top-tier support in financial management and ERP applications. This breadth of skills allows Progent to salvage and integrate the surviving parts of your IT environment following a ransomware attack and rebuild them rapidly into an operational network. Progent has collaborated with top cyber insurance carriers like Chubb to assist businesses clean up after ransomware assaults.
Contact Progent for Ransomware Cleanup Expertise in Austin
For ransomware recovery services in the Austin metro area, call Progent at 800-462-8800 or see Contact Progent.