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Ransomware Becomes Biggest Threat To SMEs

Article by diogo@techpatrol.com.au
November 27, 2018
Security News

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As a Managed Service Provider (MSP) one of the essential services that you should be delivering to your customers is patch management. From fixing security vulnerabilities to improving performance, keeping your customers’ systems current and secure. This can be time-consuming and costly, however, this has to be done and has to be done at a high level. Datto, Inc. has released their third annual Global State of the Channel Ransomware Report and throughout this article, we will analyse the biggest threats to businesses today.

Ransomware is a type of malicious software that is designed to block user access to a computer making business data inaccessible until a sum of money known as the “Ransom” is paid. Datto, our partner in disaster recovery, has released their third annual Channel Ransomware Report after surveying 2400 managed service providers (MSPs) that support the IT needs of nearly 500K SMEs around the globe. The Survey revealed that Ransomware is the biggest threat to SMEs and not only that, the survey also revealed the powerful impact these attacks have on businesses.

Survey Outcomes:

The average attack is 10 times more costly to the business than the ransom itself, with attacks costing a business $46,800 on average and the ransom requested averaging $4,300 per attack.
More than 55 per cent of MSPs stated their clients experienced a ransomware attack in the first six months of 2018, and 35 per cent said their clients were attacked multiple times in the same day. 92 per cent of MSPs predicts that the number of attacks will continue at current or increased rates.
85 per cent of MSPs reported that ransomware victims had antivirus software installed, 65 per cent reported victims had email/spam filters installed, and 29 per cent reported victims had had pop-up blockers, which failed to block ransomware attacks.
There was a fivefold increase in the number of MSPs reporting ransomware attacks on macOS and iOS platforms over the last year.

“The number one threat for small business CEOs is thinking they are immune to ransomware attacks,” said Michael Drake, CEO of masterIT, an MSP in Memphis, Tennessee who just like Tech Patrol has helped clients recover from ransomware disasters. “They think they don’t have anything the hackers want, so it’s not worth the price to protect themselves. When somthing happens, they’re shocked by the cost to get everything back up and running. IT’s mind-blowing.”

There is an interesting fundamental point to this report and that is that whilst the report findings alone are extremely alarming, most businesses won’t act upon this. The survey found that less than one in four ransomware attacks were actually reported to the authorities. Whether this is because of embarrassment or any other case, this is a disappointing statistic as we all need to grow and understand these attacks for protection and prevention.

Nearly half of Australian businesses (48%) were targeted by ransomware exploit attempts during 2017, according to data from Sophos. The security vendor surveyed more than 2,70-0 IT decision makers from mid-sized businesses in 10 countries worldwide, including the US, Canada, Mexico, France, Germany, UK, Australia (200), Japan, India, and Africa.

Datto Report Also Found:

Business continuity and disaster recovery (BCDR) technology is deemed the single most effective method for ransomware protection. In addition, SMEs should work with their MSP to create a ransomware response plan that includes detection, communication, cause assessment, recovery, and prevention.
Employees need training and education to be the front line of defence. Ongoing training for employees to help them remain vigilant is the best practice for small businesses.

If you want to give a Disaster Recovery Solution a try please reach out to us to ensure that your business is covered, you can email us here.

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