Ransomware Hot Line: 800-462-8800
24x7 Remote Access to a Senior Ransomware Engineer
Ransomware requires time to work its way across a target network. Because of this, ransomware attacks are typically unleashed on weekends and at night, when support staff may be slower to recognize a break-in and are less able to organize a quick and coordinated response. The more lateral progress ransomware can achieve inside a target's system, the more time it takes to recover basic IT services and scrambled files and the more information can be exfiltrated to the dark web.
Progent's Ransomware Hot Line is designed to guide you to take the urgent first phase in responding to a ransomware attack by containing the malware. Progent's remote ransomware engineers can help organizations in the Palo Alto area to identify and quarantine breached devices and guard clean resources from being penetrated.
If your network has been penetrated 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 Recovery Services Available in Palo Alto
Current variants of crypto-ransomware like Ryuk, Sodinokibi, DopplePaymer, and Egregor encrypt online data and invade any available backups. Files synchronized to the cloud can also be impacted. For a vulnerable environment, this can make system restoration almost impossible and effectively knocks the datacenter back to square one. So-called Threat Actors (TAs), the hackers behind a ransomware assault, insist on a ransom fee for the decryption tools needed to unlock scrambled data. Ransomware assaults also attempt to steal (or "exfiltrate") files and TAs require an extra settlement in exchange for not publishing this data or selling it. Even if you are able to restore your network to a tolerable date in time, exfiltration can pose a major problem according to the nature of the stolen data.
The restoration process subsequent to ransomware penetration involves several distinct phases, most of which can be performed concurrently if the recovery workgroup has a sufficient number of members with the required skill sets.
- Containment: This time-critical initial step requires arresting the lateral progress of the attack across your IT system. The longer a ransomware attack is allowed to run unrestricted, the more complex and more expensive the restoration process. Because of this, Progent maintains a 24x7 Ransomware Hotline staffed by veteran ransomware recovery engineers. Quarantine processes consist of cutting off infected endpoint devices from the network to restrict the contagion, documenting the IT system, and securing entry points.
- System continuity: This covers bringing back the IT system to a minimal useful level of functionality with the least downtime. This process is typically at the highest level of urgency for the targets of the ransomware attack, who often see it as a life-or-death issue for their business. This project also requires the broadest array of technical abilities that span domain controllers, DHCP servers, physical and virtual machines, PCs, laptops and smart phones, databases, productivity and mission-critical applications, network architecture, and secure endpoint access. Progent's ransomware recovery team uses state-of-the-art workgroup tools to organize the complex restoration effort. Progent appreciates the importance of working rapidly, continuously, and in unison with a customer's managers and network support group to prioritize tasks and to put vital services back online as quickly as feasible.
- Data restoration: The work required to recover data impacted by a ransomware assault varies according to the condition of the network, the number of files that are encrypted, and which recovery 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 rely on Active Directory, and many manufacturing and other mission-critical platforms are powered by Microsoft SQL Server. Often some detective work could be needed to find clean data. For example, undamaged Outlook Email Offline Folder Files may exist on employees' desktop computers and notebooks that were off line during the ransomware attack. Progent's ProSight Data Protection Services utilize Altaro VM Backup technology to protect against ransomware attacks by leveraging Immutable Cloud Storage. This creates tamper-proof data that cannot be erased or modified by anyone including root users.
- Setting up advanced AV/ransomware defense: Progent's Active Security Monitoring uses SentinelOne's behavioral analysis technology to give small and mid-sized companies the advantages of the same anti-virus tools deployed by many of the world's biggest enterprises including Walmart, Visa, and NASDAQ. By providing in-line malware filtering, detection, containment, recovery and forensics in one integrated platform, Progent's ASM lowers total cost of ownership, streamlines administration, and expedites resumption of operations. SentinelOne's next-generation endpoint protection engine built into in Progent's Active Security Monitoring was listed by Gartner Group as the industry's "most visionary Endpoint Protection Platform." Progent is a SentinelOne Partner, dealer, and integrator. Read about Progent's ProSight Active Security Monitoring endpoint protection and ransomware defense with SentinelOne technology.
- Negotiation with the hacker Progent has experience negotiating ransom settlements with threat actors. This requires working closely with the victim and the insurance provider, if there is one. Activities include establishing the type of ransomware used in the attack; identifying and making contact with the hacker; testing decryption tool; deciding on a settlement amount with the victim and the insurance provider; negotiating a settlement and timeline with the hacker; confirming adherence to anti-money laundering sanctions; carrying out the crypto-currency payment to the hacker; acquiring, learning, and operating the decryption utility; debugging decryption problems; building a pristine environment; remapping and connecting datastores to match precisely their pre-attack condition; and restoring physical and virtual devices and software services.
- Forensic analysis: This process involves discovering the ransomware attack's storyline across the network from beginning to end. This audit trail of how a ransomware assault progressed through the network assists your IT staff to evaluate the impact and brings to light gaps in rules or work habits that should be corrected to avoid later breaches. Forensics involves the review of all logs, registry, Group Policy Object (GPO), Active Directory (AD), DNS servers, routers, firewalls, schedulers, and core Windows systems to check for anomalies. Forensic analysis is usually given a top priority by the cyber insurance carrier. Since forensics can be time consuming, it is vital that other important recovery processes such as business resumption are performed concurrently. Progent has an extensive roster of IT and security experts with the knowledge and experience required to perform the work of containment, business resumption, and data recovery without disrupting forensic analysis.
Progent's Qualifications
Progent has provided remote and on-premises IT services throughout the U.S. for over 20 years and has earned Microsoft's Partner designation in the Datacenter and Cloud Productivity competencies. Progent's team of subject matter experts includes professionals who have been awarded high-level certifications in foundation technology platforms including Cisco networking, VMware virtualization, and major Linux distros. Progent's data security consultants have earned internationally recognized certifications including CISA, CISSP, GIAC, and CMMC 2.0. (Refer to certifications earned by Progent consultants). Progent also has guidance in financial management and Enterprise Resource Planning applications. This scope of expertise gives Progent the ability to identify and consolidate the surviving pieces of your network following a ransomware attack and reconstruct them quickly into a functioning network. Progent has worked with leading cyber insurance providers including Chubb to help organizations clean up after ransomware assaults.
Contact Progent for Ransomware Cleanup Consulting Services in Palo Alto
For ransomware system recovery expertise in the Palo Alto metro area, phone Progent at 800-462-8800 or visit Contact Progent.