BACKGROUND:
According to Mimecast’s report on ransomware readiness, 80% of businesses around the world have been attacked by ransomware, and executives in this research reported experiencing an average of about 3,000 ransomware attacks over the last two years – or an average of four attacks per day.
Of that 80%, 39% paid a ransom, with US victims paying an average of $6,312,190. Victims in Canada paid an average of $5,347,508 while those in the UK paid nearly $850,000.
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<p>Ransomware costs extend well beyond the ransom payment itself. The value at risk equation includes reputational damage, loss of income, impact to share price for publicly traded companies and, in some cases, employee and customer welfare. The BBC reported that the HSE healthcare system in Ireland is still trying to recover six months after that infamous ransomware attack, which affected critical patient services. </p>
<p>In order to inflict damage, all of these attackers exploit privileged identities in the network. Therefore, all organizations need to put significant effort into reducing and managing privileged identity risk. By doing so, organizations will shrink their attack surface and stop lateral movement, thus protecting their critical assets and preventing ransomware attacks from being launched.</p>