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. For this reason, ransomware assaults are typically unleashed on weekends and at night, when IT staff are likely to take longer to recognize a penetration and are least able to mount a quick and coordinated response. The more lateral progress ransomware is able to achieve within a victim's system, the longer it takes to restore basic IT services and damaged files and the more data can be stolen and posted to the dark web.
Progent's Ransomware Hot Line is designed to guide organizations to carry out the urgent first step in mitigating a ransomware assault by putting out the fire. Progent's remote ransomware engineers can assist organizations in the Lincoln area to locate and isolate breached servers and endpoints and guard undamaged assets from being penetrated.
If your network has been breached by any version of ransomware, act fast. Get help quickly by calling Progent's Ransomware Hot Line at 800-462-8800.
Progent's Ransomware Response Expertise Available in Lincoln
Current strains of ransomware such as Ryuk, Sodinokibi, Netwalker, and Egregor encrypt online data and attack any accessible system restores and backups. Data synched to the cloud can also be corrupted. For a vulnerable environment, this can make system restoration almost impossible and basically throws the IT system back to the beginning. So-called Threat Actors (TAs), the cybercriminals behind a ransomware attack, demand a settlement fee in exchange for the decryptors needed to recover encrypted files. Ransomware attacks also attempt to steal (or "exfiltrate") files and TAs demand an additional payment in exchange for not publishing this data on the dark web. Even if you can restore your network to a tolerable date in time, exfiltration can pose a big problem depending on the nature of the downloaded information.
The recovery work subsequent to ransomware attack has several distinct phases, most of which can be performed in parallel if the response team has enough people with the necessary skill sets.
- Quarantine: This time-critical initial step involves arresting the sideways progress of ransomware across your IT system. The more time a ransomware attack is permitted to go unrestricted, the more complex and more costly the restoration effort. Because of this, Progent keeps a round-the-clock Ransomware Hotline monitored by seasoned ransomware recovery engineers. Quarantine processes include cutting off infected endpoints from the network to block the contagion, documenting the environment, and securing entry points.
- Operational continuity: This involves bringing back the IT system to a basic useful degree of functionality with the shortest possible downtime. 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 demands the broadest array of technical skills that span domain controllers, DHCP servers, physical and virtual machines, desktops, laptops and smart phones, databases, productivity and line-of-business apps, network architecture, and secure remote access. Progent's ransomware recovery team uses advanced collaboration tools to coordinate the complicated restoration process. Progent understands the importance of working rapidly, continuously, and in concert with a client's management and IT group to prioritize tasks and to get critical resources on line again as fast as possible.
- Data restoration: The effort required to restore files impacted by a ransomware attack varies according to the state of the systems, the number of files that are affected, and which restore methods are needed. Ransomware attacks can take down key databases which, if not gracefully shut down, might need to be rebuilt from scratch. This can apply to DNS and Active Directory (AD) databases. Exchange and SQL Server depend on AD, and many ERP and other business-critical platforms depend on Microsoft SQL Server. Often some detective work could be needed to locate undamaged data. For instance, undamaged OST files (Outlook Email Offline Folder Files) may have survived on employees' desktop computers and laptops that were off line at the time of the assault. Progent's Altaro VM Backup experts can assist you to deploy immutable backup for cloud object storage, allowing tamper-proof data while under the defined policy so that backup data cannot be erased or modified by any user including administrators or root users. Immutable storage adds another level of security and recoverability in case of a successful ransomware attack.
- Implementing advanced antivirus/ransomware protection: ProSight ASM uses SentinelOne's behavioral analysis technology to offer small and medium-sized companies the benefits of the identical AV tools deployed by some of the world's biggest corporations including Walmart, Visa, and Salesforce. By providing real-time malware blocking, identification, containment, recovery and forensics in a single integrated platform, ProSight Active Security Monitoring cuts TCO, streamlines management, and expedites resumption of operations. SentinelOne's next-generation endpoint protection engine incorporated in Progent's ASM was listed by Gartner Group as the industry's "most visionary Endpoint Protection Platform (EPP)." Progent is a SentinelOne Partner, reseller, and integrator. Find out about Progent's ProSight Active Security Monitoring (ASM) next-generation endpoint protection and ransomware recovery with SentinelOne technology.
- Negotiating a settlement with the threat actor (TA): Progent is experienced in negotiating ransom settlements with hackers. This requires close co-operation with the ransomware victim and the cyber insurance provider, if any. Services include establishing the type of ransomware used in the attack; identifying and making contact with the hacker; verifying decryption tool; budgeting a settlement with the victim and the insurance carrier; establishing a settlement amount and timeline with the TA; confirming adherence to anti-money laundering regulations; overseeing the crypto-currency disbursement to the TA; acquiring, reviewing, and using the decryptor utility; debugging decryption problems; creating a clean environment; remapping and connecting datastores to match precisely their pre-attack state; and recovering machines and services.
- Forensics: This process is aimed at uncovering the ransomware attack's progress across the targeted network from beginning to end. This audit trail of how a ransomware attack travelled through the network assists your IT staff to assess the impact and brings to light shortcomings in rules or work habits that should be rectified to prevent future breaches. Forensics involves the review of all logs, registry, Group Policy Object (GPO), AD, DNS, routers, firewalls, scheduled tasks, and basic Windows systems to check for variations. Forensic analysis is usually given a top priority by the insurance provider. Because forensics can be time consuming, it is critical that other key activities such as operational resumption are pursued in parallel. Progent maintains an extensive roster of information technology and cybersecurity experts with the knowledge and experience needed to perform the work of containment, business continuity, and data restoration without disrupting forensic analysis.
Progent's Background
Progent has delivered online and on-premises IT services throughout the United States for more than 20 years and has been awarded Microsoft's Gold Partner certification in the Datacenter and Cloud Productivity practice areas. Progent's roster of subject matter experts (SMEs) includes professionals who have been awarded advanced certifications in core technology platforms including Cisco networking, VMware virtualization, and major Linux distros. Progent's cybersecurity consultants have earned prestigious certifications such as CISA, CISSP-ISSAP, and GIAC. (See Progent's certifications). Progent also has guidance in financial management and ERP software. This scope of skills gives Progent the ability to identify and integrate the surviving pieces of your IT environment following a ransomware intrusion and rebuild them quickly into an operational network. Progent has worked with leading cyber insurance providers including Chubb to assist businesses clean up after ransomware assaults.
Contact Progent for Ransomware Recovery Consulting Services in Lincoln
For ransomware cleanup services in the Lincoln metro area, phone Progent at 800-462-8800 or see Contact Progent.