3 Things to Understand About Ransomware Settlements

3 Things to Understand About Ransomware Settlements

Imagine waking up one fine day to work on your computer only to find everything locked away in a safe. The only way to unlock it is to pay some faceless organization a thousand dollars or two. This is a ransomware attack.

Ransomware is essentially a form of computer malware that can encrypt a user’s information. It is then upon the attacker to decide how the victim’s information is used; although, this is mostly used to demand large sums of money (hence, the word “ransom”). This ransom is the ransomware settlement.

Ransomware Is an Effective Digital Extortion Method

The primary reason why ransomware is in conversations is because it works. It is effective in expediting large sums of revenue from the compromised party. Organizations that fail to appreciate the brevity of ransomware are often the most likely to be attacked.

Ransomware attackers target the usual weak spots in IT infrastructures. This includes poor or untested backup procedures, unpatched software and user errors. This has made ransomware responsible for almost 21 percent of all security data breaches, irrespective of the size of the organization.

Ransomware Attacks Often Start With Phishing

Phishing involves tricking internet users to open malicious links. These links will often take the facade of trustable organizations like Google, YouTube, etc., and trick users into revealing personal credentials. Phishing is largely responsible for a lot of the ransomware exploits in your system. And despite how discouraging that might seem, it actually is a good thing. It means we can take measures to prevent them.

So what can you do to prevent malware, phishing or ransomware attacks? Let’s dive right into it.

Preventive Measures for Ransomware

Surprisingly, a lot of the measures you can take to keep yourself safe(r) from ransomware comes down to your internet ethics. Phishing e-mails are almost inevitable once you exist online. How you dodge them is what makes all the difference. Here are some actionable steps you can take to avoid paying ransomware settlements:

1. Hover Over Links to Verify URLs

In PCs, you can actually hover over links to see a link preview. If the preview looks slightly suspicious, consider not only not interacting with it, but also deleting the message/mail you got it from.

2. Use Two-Factor (or Multi-Factor) Authentication

Multi-factor authentication protects your online accounts through verification on more than one device. This means even if one device gets compromised, you still won’t lose control of your account. Attackers will need the verification from all the other devices connected to the authentication chain.

3. Invest in Cyber Insurance

Paying attention to the risk of ransomware settlements and cyber insurance as a small or medium-sized organization can often mean a strong fallback plan in the event of an unfortunate cyber-attack. 

Even though cyber insurance doesn’t imply total immunity from ransomware, it really is the best tool for organizations to combat this threat, especially if they do not have the means necessary to check if their security is likely to withstand attack. 

Cyber security is one of the most underrated topics of discussion across the world. Given the discouraging statistics of companies losing millions to cyber-attackers, the education on internet safety really is more important now than ever.