Ransomware Attacks Can Be Prevented

Prevent A Ransomware Attack

On May 6th, 2021, a major ransomware attack on Colonial Pipeline sparked chaos on the east coast, with people rushing to secure fuel as prices soared and supply halted. This sudden cyber-hack that sparked outrage is becoming all too common in both the public and private sectors. With approximately $600 billion lost globally, and up to $109 billion lost in the United States alone due to cybercrime,
ransomware is an ongoing threat that proves our first line of cyber defense is a significant vulnerability.

Ransomware is a type of malware that infiltrates an organization’s IT (Information Technology) system and holds their critical data hostage by encrypting it, making it utterly useless to anyone who does not hold the encryption key. Additionally, ransomware is a cyber-attack used solely for financial gain. Over the years, many government entities have fallen victim to ransomware and were forced to either
pay the hackers or build new systems from scratch to avoid paying the demanded fee. Louisiana, Baltimore, dozens of Texas cities, and multiple cities in Florida were all similar victims of ransomware in 2019. These attacks can shut down emergency 911 dispatch systems, take our hospitals offline, shut down citizen resource portals, and cost the government millions of dollars to recover losses.
Many of the attacks prove that our susceptibility lies within our lack of proper cyber defenses.

Over the years, ransomware has become more sophisticated. With ransomware being a class of malware, it is an attack that is often avoidable if proper cyber defense mechanisms are in place. Malware presents itself in many forms, ranging from trojans passing as legitimate files in your system to bots that may allow a hacker remote access to your device. Often you can prevent or detect this sort of
malware attack if proper cyber hygiene processes and practices are in place.

There are several ways to protect yourself from bad actors and keep your organization cyber-ready. The entire Defense Industrial Base (DIB) is on its way to compliance with the new Cybersecurity Maturity Model Certification (CMMC). The Department of Defense (DoD) and additional stakeholders created CMMC to ensure a more reliable and official method of protecting both Federal Contract Information (FCI) and Controlled Unclassified Information (CUI). The CMMC practices promote a cyber environment resistant to ransomware attacks.
CMMC starts with level 1 certification and only allows contractors to handle and bid on contracts with FCI. The most advanced level of certification is level 5, which could potentially detect and prevent a ransomware attack from happening. You will be able to decide what level of certification is appropriate for you, depending on the nature of your business and the contracts you intend to bid on. GSec LLC
encourages you to reach out and ask us your questions about cyber hygiene and your CMMC process. We pride ourselves on catering to unique environments and small businesses. To learn more about CMMC, check out our blog on CMMC.

By: Alex O’Reilly