Articles of interest from the week of August 23, 2021

Backup Is Feeble Protection Against Ransomware

Protecting data against ransomware requires specialized solutions. The purpose of backup was to have a copy of data that can be recovered. Backup systems offer no protection for data or the computer systems themselves. (By Yuen Pin Yeap, Forbes) Ingalls: Today’s malware commonly defeats old-fashioned antivirus, destroys backups, and demands an exorbitant ransom to restore encrypted data that the business literally can’t live without. It’s not that the attacker is breaking into your network anymore. They’re logging in. Click here to learn more.

US Hospitals Divert Care After Cyber-attack

A cyber-attack forced hospitals in West Virginia and Ohio to divert patients to other care providers and work from paper records. (By Sarah Coble, Infosecurity Magazine) Ingalls: We believe it is important that there are affordable and effective cybersecurity solutions for businesses of every size. We offer best-in-class information security solutions suitable for the largest hospitals at a price point that is affordable for small healthcare providers. Request a demo for your company today.

Phishing Costs Surge to $15m Annually for US Organizations

The average cost of phishing for large US organizations has soared by 289% over the past six years, with firms now losing nearly $15m annually. (By Phil Muncaster, Infosecurity Magazine) Ingalls: We help businesses large and small manage security risks and defend against phishing attacks. If you’d like to learn more please contact us. One of our cybersecurity experts will be more than happy to assist you and answer any questions you may have. Our “How to Spot a Phish” checklist can help you identify phishing emails and provides advice on what to do with them.

The T-Mobile Data Breach Is One You Can’t Ignore

Not all data breaches are created equal. None of them are good, but they do come in varying degrees of bad. And given how regularly they happen, it’s understandable that you may have become inured to the news. Still, a T-Mobile breach that hackers claim involved the data of 100 million people deserves your attention, especially if you’re a customer of the “un-carrier.” (By Brian Barrett, WIRED) Ingalls: We have worked Incident Response for over 10 years; in that time we have seen some of the nastiest data breaches and a lot of victims who thought they were safe because they were using popular antivirus software. We’ve seen what works and what doesn’t, and we have a clear message about using legacy antivirus or any other “silver bullet” to protect from ransomware and hackers. So right up front, here it is: Antivirus Is Dead. Click here to find out why.

Why Is There A Surge In Ransomware Attacks?

The U.S. is presently combating two pandemics--coronavirus and ransomware attacks. Both have partially shut down parts of the economy. However, in the case of cybersecurity, lax security measures allow hackers to have an easy way to rake in millions. (By The Hacker News)  Ingalls: Unfortunately, ransomware remains a serious threat to all industries and accounts for nearly a quarter of all malware-based attacks. Ransomware has become so widespread and commonplace that a normal attack garners neither the shock of security professionals nor the attention of the media. Are You Prepared To Defend Against Ransomware?