Calgary Ransomware Prevention and Restoration Solutions

Ransomware has been weaponized by the major cyber-crime organizations and bad-actor governments, posing a potentially existential risk to businesses that are successfully attacked. Current variations of crypto-ransomware target all vulnerable resources, including online backup, making even partial restoration a long and expensive process. New versions of crypto-ransomware such as Ryuk, Maze, Sodinokibi, Mailto (aka Netwalker), Phobos, LockBit and Egregor have made the headlines, replacing WannaCry, TeslaCrypt, and CryptoWall in prominence, elaborateness, and destructive impact.

Most crypto-ransomware breaches are caused by innocent-looking emails that include malicious hyperlinks or file attachments, and many are so-called "zero-day" attacks that can escape the defenses of legacy signature-based antivirus (AV) tools. While user education and up-front identification are important to defend your network against ransomware, best practices demand that you expect that some malware will inevitably succeed and that you deploy a solid backup mechanism that permits you to recover quickly with minimal losses.

Progent's ProSight Ransomware Preparedness Assessment is an ultra-affordable service built around an online discussion with a Progent security consultant experienced in ransomware defense and recovery. In the course of this interview Progent will cooperate directly with your Calgary network managers to collect pertinent data about your cybersecurity setup and backup environment. Progent will utilize this data to create a Basic Security and Best Practices Assessment detailing how to follow best practices for implementing and managing your security and backup systems to prevent or recover from a crypto-ransomware attack.

Progent's Basic Security and Best Practices Report highlights vital areas related to crypto-ransomware defense and restoration recovery. The review covers:

Security

• Effective use of admin accounts
• Correct NTFS and SMB (Server Message Block) authorizations
• Optimal firewall setup
• Secure RDP configuration
• Guidance for AntiVirus filtering selection and deployment

• Split permission model for backup protection
• Backing up required servers including AD
• Offsite backups including cloud backup to Azure

About Ransomware
Ransomware is a variety of malicious software that encrypts or steals files so they cannot be used or are made publicly available. Crypto-ransomware often locks the target's computer. To avoid the damage, the victim is required to send a specified amount of money (the ransom), typically in the form of a crypto currency such as Bitcoin, within a short time window. There is no guarantee that delivering the ransom will restore the damaged files or avoid its publication. Files can be encrypted or deleted across a network depending on the victim's write permissions, and you cannot reverse engineer the strong encryption algorithms used on the hostage files. A common ransomware delivery package is spoofed email, in which the victim is tricked into responding to by a social engineering exploit called spear phishing. This causes the email to appear to come from a trusted source. Another popular vulnerability is an improperly protected Remote Desktop Protocol (RDP) port.

The ransomware variant CryptoLocker ushered in the modern era of ransomware in 2013, and the monetary losses attributed to by the many strains of ransomware is said to be billions of dollars per year, more than doubling every two years. Notorious examples include WannaCry, and NotPetya. Recent headline threats like Ryuk, Maze and Cerber are more complex and have caused more damage than older strains. Even if your backup processes permit your business to recover your ransomed data, you can still be hurt by exfiltration, where stolen data are made public (known as "doxxing"). Because new variants of ransomware crop up every day, there is no guarantee that conventional signature-based anti-virus tools will block a new malware. If threat does show up in an email, it is important that your users have learned to be aware of social engineering tricks. Your last line of protection is a sound scheme for performing and retaining remote backups and the use of reliable recovery platforms.

Contact Progent About the ProSight Crypto-Ransomware Preparedness Testing in Calgary
For pricing information and to learn more about how Progent's ProSight Ransomware Vulnerability Assessment can enhance your protection against crypto-ransomware in Calgary, phone Progent at 800-462-8800 or see Contact Progent.