Why online backup is the best way to beat Ransomware

Online Backup: The best way to protect your business from Ransomware

Ransomware is a cyber security buzzword that has been circulating the headlines lately. Ransomware is a type of cyber attack that encrypts a network or files, demanding the victim pays a sum of money in return for the files to be decrypted. Businesses are advised to take all steps possible to ensure security measures and a backup solution are in place to help combat the threat.

Ransomware: Don’t learn the hard way.

Unfortunately, there are millions of victims of cybercrime every year, costing UK businesses millions of pounds in damage and downtime. The Government has reported that 9 in 10 businesses do not have an incident management plan in place which sadly leads to many businesses finding out the hard way. Don’t worry, we hope that as you are reading this blog, you won’t be one of them! Discover more about how backing up your data and implementing security measures can help your business beat ransomware.

‘How can I prevent a ransomware attack from damaging my business?’

Hey, put that hanky away! Not all hope is lost, as the government has pumped £1.9 billion into a new cyber security agency, the National Cyber Security Centre (NCSC). Put in place to inform, protect and prevent attacks from hitting critical UK organisations, the main aim of the NCSC is to improve the overall security of our internet by giving businesses accurate advice that will help to combat cyber threats.

What does the NCSC recommend?

The NCSC recommends that following these steps can help to limit the damage to your business in the event of a ransomware attack.

Good Access Control

If Ransomware hits, you can count on good compartmentalisation of user privileges to limit the extent of the attack, this way only the data owned by the infected user is encrypted. Take a look at who has access to what, and check access to shared network drive permissions regularly. This can help to prevent the ransomware from spreading to mapped and unmapped drives.

Limit Access to Data

Ransomware can be contained, if access to important data is limited to those who have a business need to access it. Limiting access to your data and file systems is basic stuff, but it’s great practice and can provide protection against a range of cyber attacks.

Online backup can help your business beat ransomware

It’s plain and simple. Take regular backups of your critical data. Choose a reliable automated backup solution so that any encrypted data can be easily restored. The NCSC advises that organisations should ensure all backup solutions in place are tested, (which, by the way, is all part of the Datastore365 service!). Backup files should not be accessible by machines which are at risk of ingesting ransomware.

However, it is important to remember backups are the final line of protection against ransomware – the adoption of good security practices, staff training and incorporating security measures into your daily routine will all help to prevent ransomware in the first place.