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What Are the Top 3 Sources of Ransomware?

Prodatix March 21, 2024 0 Comments

It’s easy not to think about ransomware until it directly affects you or your company. In fact, most people don’t start thinking about ransomware until it’s too late. At Prodatix it’s our goal to help you NOT be like those people, which is why we’re going to explain the 3 most common sources of ransomware. 

 

1. Phishing emails 

 

Whether you know it or not, you’re probably already familiar with phishing emails. Furthermore, there’s a good chance you’ve received one. Scammers use phishing emails to gather personal information about people, including passwords, account numbers, Social Security numbers, birth dates, and more. They then use this information to access online accounts or sell the information to other scammers. 

 

There are nearly endless examples of phishing emails, but some of the most common examples can be pretty sophisticated. Common examples of phishing emails include fake invoice scams, advance-fee scam, Google docs scam, PayPal scam, and more. 

 

The Federal Trade Commission suggests 4 ways you can protect yourself from phishing scams: 

 

  • Protect your computer by using security software
  • Protect your cell phone by setting software to update automatically 
  • Protect your accounts by using multi-factor authentication 
  • Protect your data by backing it up 

When it comes to protecting your company from ransomware, the best offense is a good defense. Don’t wait until you’ve had a data breach to take your data protection seriously. Request a free Veeam trial today!

2. Remote access

 

These days more people are working remotely than ever before. Although this might be preferred by many employees, with it comes an increased chance of a cyberattack. In fact, a 2021 study by tenable found that 67% of cyberattacks that impacted businesses targeted remote employees. 

 

Remote access attacks happen when a hacker finds a vulnerable network and gains access in one of two ways. The first way is through brute force guessing, which is actually a pretty simple technique. They use a computer program to keep guessing random passwords in the hope that one of the passwords will work. The second technique is to buy passwords on the dark web. 

 

In order to avoid this, protect your company with a enterprise-grade multi-factor authentication program, such as Duo from Cisco. It’s inexpensive insurance that will protect against a remote access compr

 

3. Exploited vulnerabilities

 

Finally, hackers and scammers take advantage of known flaws in software programs. New flaws are discovered all the time. There are endless examples of this type of security breach. Just this past March, Microsoft revealed that Hafnium, a group based out of China had attacked entities by targeting their Exchange server. Microsoft then released security updates for the program. 

 

Hackers target Microsoft SQL server databases more than just about any other program as they know your database holds the keys to all your invoices, customer accounts, and employee payroll information. Without proper protection, including encrypting your data backups, you risk exposing your customer and employee data and your company’s reputation.

 

Prodatix Are Ransomware Experts

Need help protecting your company from ransomware attacks? We’re here to help. Contact us online or give us a call today for a free consultation.  

AboutMatt Bullock
Matt is the VP of technical sales for Prodatix. He's been an entrepreneur for the past 30 years in the technology (hardware and software) industry. He's focused on educating clients on the need for a complete data protection solution and a tested recovery plan to ensure business continuity.