Data Breaches and Ransomware Attacks: Think Your Business Data Is Safe?

Colonial Pipeline 2

Find Out How Easily You Can Get Hacked

The May 2021 Colonial Pipeline cyberattack, on a major U.S. fuel company that delivers about 45% of the East Coast’s fuel, underscored the severe challenges that government and private sectors face. Ransomware attacks are on the rise, and cybercriminals have upped the ante.

Hackers also target small businesses and raise the stakes. First, they gain access to your computer. Then, they lock your files, so you can’t use them until you pay a ransom. Click here for owner Ron Pierce’s recent TV interview regarding cyber security.

Cyberthreats to Small Businesses

Cybercriminals extort millions of dollars from large companies and corporations with thousands of clients who could be affected by each attack. But don’t think you’re safe if you’re a small business. These criminals have no boundaries, and sometimes they go for the easiest target: small businesses that can’t afford heavy-duty security systems.

What Is a Ransomware Attack?

Ransomware is malicious software (malware) that invites data breaches on computers.

A good computer security system employs firewalls that keep outside intruders away from data. But when malware breaches the firewall, your data is at risk. The hacker then threatens to publish information from or block access to the data on your computer system.

How Ransomware Attacks Happen

Data breaches and identity theft have long concerned governments, businesses, and the general public. Typically, cybercriminals gain access when a person opens an email, clicks on a link, or downloads a file infected with the malware. The malware then breaches your firewall or other security measures, allowing the cybercriminal access to your data. The cybercriminal demands that victims pay a ransom to regain access and ensure their data is not published.

A ransomware attack forces the victim to pay large sums of money and puts the personal identity information of consumers and citizens at risk. This can lead to further theft long after the initial ransomware attack.

But let’s say you pay the ransom, and they unlock your files. The next level up from that is blackmail. Some hackers will tell you they’ve got personal information they uploaded from your computer. If you want them to keep that information to themselves, they’ll require more payments.

Security Assessments Could Save Your System from a Ransomware Attack

Call Trinity Solutions TODAY to schedule a security assessment for your computer system!

Skyrocketing Costs of Ransomware Attacks

Recent ransomware attacks have risen 600% globally since the onset of the COVID-19 worldwide pandemic. The Colonial Pipeline reportedly paid $4.4 million in ransom. If you compare the $6 trillion lost to cybercrime worldwide in 2021 to a country, it would comprise the third-largest economy after the U.S. and China.

Data Breaches from 2018–2020

Data breaches can occur both internally and externally, exposing consumers’ personally identifiable information. An interactive infographic, updated in April 2021, from informationisbeautiful.net portrays the staggering rise in data breaches.

Facebook: 420 million records of their users’ personal information leaked to the internet in 2018 and 533 million in 2019
Microsoft: 250 million records from customer support logs spanning 14 years (2005 – 2019) that included personally identifiable information leaked to the internet
Twitter: 330 million users urged to change their passwords after finding them in readable format on Twitter’s internal computer system due to a “bug” they “fixed” in 2018
Capital One: 100 million accounts hacked, leading to sensitive information (including social security numbers and bank account numbers) stolen from credit card applications submitted from 2005 to 2019

How to Prevent Ransomware Attacks

Cybercrime has become a booming industry. So, it’s imperative to protect both yourself and your customers. Trinity Solutions recommends that you backup your computer files at least daily to avoid losing important data. We can steer you to appropriate cloud-hosted solutions.

Trinity Solutions also recommends taking the following steps to prevent ransomware attacks.

Update Software: Microsoft had developed a patch for the WannaCry malware eight weeks before a global attack hijacked hundreds of thousands of computer systems. Had people updated their Microsoft software, they could have mitigated the severity of the attack.

Install Antivirus Software: According to Marty Kamden of NordVPN, 30% of antivirus programs could have detected and neutralized the WannaCry malware. But don’t just assume that all antivirus programs protect the same. What you buy commercially is often a lower grade of protection. And if you are trusting your business to Free Antivirus products, you WILL become a victim.
Be Cautious of Emails & Pop-ups: Don’t click links inside suspicious emails, even from someone you know.
Look Carefully at Email Elements: The sender’s email address, grammar errors, and typos could give clues. Hover your cursor over links, but don’t click the link. Read the hyperlink to see if it leads to a suspicious website or a website you don’t recognize.
Don’t Immediately Trust an Email that Seems to Come from Your Bank, Credit Card, or Internet Service Provider: These companies will not ask you for sensitive information like a Social Security Number, passwords, or account numbers through an email.

How to Handle a Ransomware Attack

If a hacker has infiltrated your system with ransomware, immediately disconnect from the internet to prevent infecting other computers.

Report the crime to law enforcement. With a lot of work and a bit of luck, they might find the culprit, which could save millions of dollars in ransomware losses over time.

Finally, seek help from a technology data recovery specialist for further options.

If you have no backups and your files are valuable, you might want to consider paying the ransom.

No computer is safe from a ransomware attack. Protect yourself, your business, and your customers by taking precautions today that could save you thousands of dollars in the future. And set up a disaster recovery plan with Trinity Solutions just in case!