Ransomware Hot Line: 800-462-8800
24x7 Remote Access to a Top-tier Ransomware Consultant
Ransomware requires time to steal its way through a target network. Because of this, ransomware attacks are typically launched on weekends and late at night, when IT personnel may take longer to become aware of a breach and are least able to mount a quick and coordinated response. The more lateral movement ransomware is able to manage within a target's network, the longer it will require to restore basic operations and damaged files and the more data can be exfiltrated to the dark web.
Progent's Ransomware Hot Line is intended to help organizations to complete the urgent first phase in responding to a ransomware assault by putting out the fire. Progent's remote ransomware experts can help businesses in the Birmingham area to identify and quarantine breached devices and protect undamaged assets from being compromised.
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 Response Services Available in Birmingham
Current variants of ransomware like Ryuk, Sodinokibi, DopplePaymer, and Egregor encrypt online data and attack any accessible backups. Files synched to the cloud can also be impacted. For a vulnerable environment, this can make automated restoration nearly impossible and basically throws the datacenter back to the beginning. So-called Threat Actors, the cybercriminals behind a ransomware attack, insist on a ransom payment in exchange for the decryption tools needed to unlock scrambled data. Ransomware attacks also try to exfiltrate files and TAs demand an additional ransom for not posting this data on the dark web. Even if you are able to restore your system to an acceptable date in time, exfiltration can be a big problem according to the nature of the downloaded information.
The restoration process subsequent to ransomware penetration involves several crucial phases, the majority of which can proceed in parallel if the response team has a sufficient number of people with the required skill sets.
- Quarantine: This urgent initial step involves blocking the lateral spread of the attack across your IT system. The more time a ransomware assault is permitted to run unrestricted, the longer and more expensive the recovery process. Recognizing this, Progent maintains a round-the-clock Ransomware Hotline monitored by veteran ransomware response engineers. Quarantine activities include cutting off affected endpoints from the network to block the contagion, documenting the IT system, and securing entry points.
- System continuity: This covers restoring the network to a minimal useful degree of functionality with the least downtime. This effort is usually at the highest level of urgency for the targets of the ransomware assault, who often see it as a life-or-death issue for their company. This activity also requires the widest range of IT skills that span domain controllers, DHCP servers, physical and virtual machines, PCs, notebooks and smart phones, databases, office and mission-critical apps, network architecture, and safe endpoint access. Progent's recovery team uses advanced collaboration platforms to organize the complex recovery process. Progent understands the urgency of working quickly, continuously, and in unison with a customer's managers and network support group to prioritize tasks and to put vital resources back online as quickly as feasible.
- Data restoration: The work necessary to restore data impacted by a ransomware attack depends on the state of the systems, how many files are encrypted, and which restore methods are required. Ransomware assaults can destroy key databases which, if not properly closed, might need to be reconstructed from scratch. This can apply to DNS and AD databases. Exchange and SQL Server rely on Active Directory, and many financial and other mission-critical platforms depend on Microsoft SQL Server. Often some detective work could be needed to find clean data. For instance, non-encrypted OST files may exist on staff desktop computers and notebooks that were not connected during the attack.
- Deploying advanced antivirus/ransomware protection: Progent's Active Security Monitoring uses SentinelOne's machine learning technology to give small and mid-sized companies the benefits of the identical anti-virus technology implemented by some of the world's largest corporations such as Walmart, Citi, and NASDAQ. By providing in-line malware filtering, classification, containment, restoration and analysis in a single integrated platform, Progent's ProSight Active Security Monitoring cuts total cost of ownership, streamlines administration, and promotes rapid resumption of operations. SentinelOne's next-generation endpoint protection (NGEP) built into in Progent's ProSight Active Security Monitoring was listed by Gartner Group as the "most visionary Endpoint Protection Platform." Progent is a SentinelOne Partner, dealer, and integrator. Find out about Progent's ProSight Active Security Monitoring next-generation endpoint protection and ransomware recovery with SentinelOne technology.
- Negotiation with the threat actor (TA): Progent has experience negotiating ransom settlements with hackers. This calls for working closely with the ransomware victim and the insurance carrier, if any. Activities include determining the type of ransomware used in the attack; identifying and making contact with the hacker persona; verifying decryption tool; deciding on a settlement with the ransomware victim and the cyber insurance carrier; negotiating a settlement amount and timeline with the TA; confirming adherence to anti-money laundering (AML) regulations; overseeing the crypto-currency transfer to the TA; acquiring, reviewing, and operating the decryptor utility; debugging decryption problems; building a clean environment; remapping and connecting drives to reflect exactly their pre-encryption condition; and restoring computers and services.
- Forensics: This process is aimed at learning the ransomware attack's progress across the targeted network from beginning to end. This audit trail of the way a ransomware assault progressed within the network assists you to assess the damage and brings to light shortcomings in security policies or processes that need to be rectified to prevent future break-ins. Forensics entails the review of all logs, registry, Group Policy Object, Active Directory (AD), DNS, routers, firewalls, scheduled tasks, and core Windows systems to look for changes. Forensic analysis is usually assigned a high priority by the cyber insurance carrier. Because forensic analysis can take time, it is critical that other key recovery processes like operational resumption are executed in parallel. Progent has an extensive roster of information technology and data security professionals with the skills required to perform the work of containment, business continuity, and data restoration without disrupting forensics.
Progent's Qualifications
Progent has delivered remote and on-premises IT services throughout the U.S. for over two decades and has been awarded Microsoft's Gold Partner designation in the Datacenter and Cloud Productivity competencies. Progent's roster of subject matter experts (SMEs) includes consultants who have been awarded high-level certifications in core technologies including Cisco infrastructure, VMware virtualization, and popular Linux distros. Progent's cybersecurity consultants have earned prestigious certifications including CISM, CISSP-ISSAP, and CRISC. (See Progent's certifications). Progent also offers top-tier support in financial and Enterprise Resource Planning application software. This breadth of skills gives Progent the ability to salvage and integrate the undamaged parts of your network following a ransomware attack and reconstruct them quickly into a viable network. Progent has worked with top insurance carriers including Chubb to assist businesses recover from ransomware assaults.
Contact Progent for Ransomware Recovery Consulting Services in Birmingham
For ransomware system restoration consulting services in the Birmingham metro area, phone Progent at 800-462-8800 or go to Contact Progent.