Birmingham Ransomware Defense and Cleanup Expertise

Ransomware Hot Line: 800-462-8800

24x7 Remote Access to a Senior Ransomware Consultant
Ransomware requires time to steal its way through a target network. Because of this, ransomware assaults are typically unleashed on weekends and at night, when IT personnel are likely to take longer to become aware of a breach and are less able to organize a quick and forceful response. The more lateral movement ransomware is able to manage inside a victim's system, the more time it will require to restore core IT services and damaged files and the more information can be exfiltrated to the dark web.

Progent's Ransomware Hot Line is intended to help organizations to take the urgent first phase in responding to a ransomware assault by stopping the bleeding. Progent's remote ransomware experts can help organizations in the Birmingham metro area to locate and quarantine breached servers and endpoints and protect undamaged resources from being compromised.

If your network has been breached by any strain of ransomware, don't panic. Get immediate help by calling Progent's Ransomware Hot Line at 800-462-8800.

Progent's Ransomware Response Expertise Available in Birmingham
Current strains of ransomware like Ryuk, Maze, Netwalker, and Nephilim encrypt online data and infiltrate any available backups. Files synchronized to the cloud can also be impacted. For a vulnerable network, this can make automated restoration almost impossible and basically throws the IT system back to the beginning. So-called Threat Actors (TAs), the hackers responsible for ransomware attack, insist on a settlement payment in exchange for the decryptors needed to unlock scrambled data. Ransomware attacks also try to steal (or "exfiltrate") information and hackers require an extra settlement for not publishing this data or selling it. Even if you can rollback your system to an acceptable date in time, exfiltration can be a major problem according to the sensitivity of the downloaded data.

The recovery work subsequent to ransomware penetration has a number of distinct stages, most of which can be performed in parallel if the recovery team has enough people with the necessary experience.

• Quarantine: This time-critical first step involves arresting the lateral progress of ransomware across your IT system. The longer a ransomware assault is permitted to go unrestricted, the longer and more costly the recovery effort. Recognizing this, Progent keeps a round-the-clock Ransomware Hotline staffed by veteran ransomware response engineers. Quarantine activities consist of isolating affected endpoints from the network to block the spread, documenting the IT system, and protecting entry points.
• System continuity: This involves bringing back the network to a minimal acceptable level of functionality with the least delay. This process is typically at the highest level of urgency for the targets of the ransomware assault, who often perceive it to be an existential issue for their company. This project also requires the broadest array of technical skills that span domain controllers, DHCP servers, physical and virtual machines, PCs, notebooks and mobile phones, databases, productivity and mission-critical apps, network architecture, and secure endpoint access. Progent's ransomware recovery team uses advanced collaboration platforms to organize the complicated restoration effort. Progent appreciates the urgency of working rapidly, continuously, and in unison with a customer's management and network support staff to prioritize tasks and to get essential resources on line again as fast as possible.
• Data restoration: The work required to restore data impacted by a ransomware assault varies according to the condition of the network, the number of files that are affected, and what restore techniques are required. Ransomware attacks can destroy key databases which, if not properly closed, might have to be rebuilt from scratch. This can include DNS and Active Directory (AD) databases. Microsoft Exchange and SQL Server depend on Active Directory, and many ERP and other business-critical applications depend on Microsoft SQL Server. Some detective work could be needed to find clean data. For instance, undamaged Outlook Email Offline Folder Files may have survived on staff desktop computers and notebooks that were not connected during the ransomware attack.
• Implementing advanced AV/ransomware defense: Progent's ProSight Active Security Monitoring utilizes SentinelOne's machine learning technology to give small and mid-sized businesses the benefits of the identical AV tools implemented by many of the world's biggest enterprises such as Walmart, Citi, and NASDAQ. By delivering real-time malware blocking, classification, mitigation, restoration and analysis in one integrated platform, Progent's Active Security Monitoring reduces total cost of ownership, streamlines management, and expedites operational continuity. SentinelOne's next-generation endpoint protection engine built into in ProSight ASM was ranked by Gartner Group as the "most visionary Endpoint Protection Platform (EPP)." Progent is a SentinelOne Partner, reseller, and integrator. Find out about Progent's ProSight Active Security Monitoring endpoint protection and ransomware defense with SentinelOne technology.
• Negotiating a settlement with the threat actor (TA): Progent is experienced in negotiating settlements with threat actors. This requires working closely with the ransomware victim and the cyber insurance provider, if there is one. Services consist of determining the kind of ransomware involved in the assault; identifying and establishing communications the hacker persona; testing decryption tool; deciding on a settlement with the victim and the cyber insurance carrier; establishing a settlement amount and timeline with the TA; confirming adherence to anti-money laundering sanctions; overseeing the crypto-currency disbursement to the hacker; receiving, reviewing, and using the decryption tool; troubleshooting failed files; building a clean environment; mapping and connecting drives to match exactly their pre-encryption state; and restoring physical and virtual devices and services.
• Forensics: This activity is aimed at learning the ransomware attack's progress across the targeted network from beginning to end. This history of how a ransomware attack travelled within the network helps your IT staff to assess the impact and brings to light vulnerabilities in rules or processes that need to be corrected to avoid future break-ins. Forensics entails the review of all logs, registry, Group Policy Object, Active Directory, DNS, routers, firewalls, schedulers, and core Windows systems to look for anomalies. Forensic analysis is usually given a top priority by the insurance provider. Since forensic analysis can be time consuming, it is critical that other key recovery processes like business continuity are executed in parallel. Progent maintains a large roster of information technology and security professionals with the skills needed to carry out the work of containment, business continuity, and data restoration without disrupting forensic analysis.

Contact Progent for Ransomware System Restoration Consulting Services in Birmingham
For ransomware cleanup consulting in the Birmingham metro area, call Progent at 800-462-8800 or go to Contact Progent.