According to research, the data on ransomware is not encouraging. These attacks are expected to increase, while at the same time they will be much more sophisticated and dangerous. In recent years, their increase has been dramatic. Initially considered a relatively small problem, it is now one of the biggest threats to companies around the world, and even to entire countries.
Some of the most prominent examples of ransomware, which show the extent of the damage that can be caused, are WannaCry and NotPetya.
WannaCry was the biggest cyber threat of 2017. It affected 300,000 victims in more than 150 countries. NotPetya, initially targeted users in Ukraine, but spread to other countries.
The administrators of another ransomware announced that «they are retiring» as they have already earned 2 billion dollars. Additionally, they said: “We have proven that when you do bad things, punishment does not come.”.
Over the summer, cities US were targeted by ransomware gangs, many of which were forced to pay huge sums of money to get their systems back up and running.
Nowadays, ransomware is the main threat in cyberspace. Most companies are “obsessed” with keeping as much data as possible on everyone and everything. At the same time, they do not take care of their effective protection. Hackers and exploit it.
Businesses are often forced to store all this data, for customers, partners, etc.However, the problem is that they don't invest in cybersecurity.
Ransomware uses what is called encryption. In this way, they manage to "lock" the victim's data and files , making them inaccessible.
Dealing with ransomware is relatively simple. There are some basic things that all companies and users can do to reduce the chances of an attack:
- Staff training (for recognizing suspicious emails)
- Creating backups for important data
- Regular updates of software, applications, systems
- Two‑factor authentication
- Change default passwords
- Ransomware attack response plan
However, hackers are constantly evolving their techniques and will always find a way to affect a business, small or large.
According to experts, ransomware is like an epidemicthat will only get worse. One of the reasons ransomware is on the rise is victims’ willingness to pay. The crooks get what they want, so they continue the attacks because they know that most victims will succumb.
Some law enforcement agencies have helped several victims by offering them tools to decrypt their systems. However, few hackers have faced justice.
Experts fear that hackers could carry out a ransomware attack on voter databases in the US presidential elections of 2020. Such an attack could prevent some people from voting. Such a thing would have significant consequences.
Unfortunately, as technology becomes more and more integrated into our lives and we use more and more smart devices, the risk of an attack increases.
