It is getting more expensive for organizations that are victims of ransomware attacks to recover. The average cost more than doubled in the final quarter of 2019. According to a recent report, an average total cost of negotiation, remediation and ransom payment is $84,116. This amount is almost double the previous figure of $41,198.
This increase is not only the result of cybercriminals demanding higher ransom amounts, but the increase in the number of victims who are willing to pay the ransom. Other costs include hardware replacement, repair costs, lost revenues, and potential litigation from customers who may think that their personal, private and financial information has been compromised.
All recovery costs can increase in relation to the sophistication and duration of the attack. And if a ransom is paid once, the cybercriminals may return for additional attacks. There are additional risks associated with ransomware infections that could make recovery for victims even more expensive.
Cybercriminals no longer only encrypting their victims’ data and demand payment for its decryption but are also downloading copies of proprietary files and threatening to release them publicly if the ransom is not paid to their satisfaction.
Cyber security experts are already tracking at least three ransomware campaigns that have made such threats: Sodinokibi, Maze, and BitPyLocker. Some victims of both Maze and Sodinokibi have had their data exposed. Experts are still unsure whether BitPyLocker is just turning up the fear factor or genuinely plans to release data if victims do not cooperate.
Many ransomware victims continue to pay even when law enforcement officials have repeatedly urged them not to. Victim companies have many reasons for paying the ransom, as they are not limited trying to stay in business, but may actually need to recover their critical data.
Industry experts estimate that only 98% of those victims who paid the ransom, actually receive a decryption tool. Even if they company feels they have solved the ransomware attack, the question remains: what else did the hackers leave behind in its network for future extortion purposes?
A strong defense, effective back-up procedures, training and daily cyber threat notifications should be your firm’s first considerations. Cyber insurance is important and essential to help pay the ransomware expenses, now estimated to be nearly $84,000.
Red Sky Alliance’s RedXray service can provide the business owner with a daily cyber threat notification report covering nine (9) cyber threat categories, so threats can be mitigated before they become expensive problems. The service starts for about $500 a month. What RedXray offers is another layer of protection for businesses without having to connect to their networks. RedXRay monitors daily our intelligence feeds to identify threats against your networks, supply chain or target companies/agencies and provides you with an emailed report. How easy is it to order? It can be ordered online in less than 3 minutes and all billing is made monthly by credit card by visiting https://wapacklabs.com/redxray.
Red Sky Alliance/Wapack Labs Corporation can help your firm protect against these threats and is now offering Cyber Insurance coverage through Chubb Insurance to help protect your organization and help with recovery expenses. Please feel free to contact us at sales@wapacklabs.com or one of our authorized RedXray sales distributors.
Red Sky Alliance is in New Boston, NH USA and is a Cyber Threat Analysis and Intelligence Service organization. For questions, comments or assistance, please contact the office directly at 888-RED-XRAY or (888)-733-9729, or email feedback@wapacklabs.com
Website: https://www.wapacklabs.com/
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/wapacklabs/
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