Ransomware Survival Guide For Life Science Organizations
Key Points:
- A new twist on ransomware now includes terrorist groups.
- It’s malicious, targets life sciences, and demands payment.
- This life science infection comes in many unsuspecting forms.
- Without these two action plans, your risks only increase.
In recent years, there have been more reports of cybercriminals now working closely with terrorist groups and corrupt governments. The goals are to wreak havoc, cause untold chaos, and target companies and organizations with ransomware attacks to fund their monetary losses.
What are life science organizations supposed to do in this era of extensive cybersecurity thefts and breaches? In today’s video, Jeremy Kushner, CEO of BACS Consulting Group, gives you a brief overview of his company’s Ransomware Survival Guide.
What is Ransomware?
Ransomware, a type of malware, is the most malicious and frequently used form of cybercrime, targeting life science companies. It locks your data with an encryption key that the attacker keeps hidden until you pay a ransom.
Ransomware encrypts the files on a workstation and can travel across your network and encrypt files on both mapped and unmapped network drives. All it takes is one infected user to cause a business or organization to get locked out accidentally.
Over the past few years, many small businesses, government agencies, and private users have become ransomware victims. Unfortunately, paying the ransom never guarantees your life sciences data is recoverable.
How Do Life Science Companies Become Infected?
Cybercriminals use numerous techniques to infect your life sciences network and devices. Those ransomware attempts come from phishing emails, unpatched programs, compromised websites, deceptive links, and free software downloads.
An attack typically starts when a user opens a malicious email attachment that installs a virus onto their desktop that begins encrypting all of their files. If that infected device was connected to your network, that virus could quickly and easily spread across your company undetected.
Surprisingly, over 50% of the companies in the life sciences space have no written incident response plan on file. Furthermore, those with an IRP haven’t tested their plan in over 6-12 months. As a result, the survival rate from a ransomware attack is roughly 3-7 days.
Do You Have An Incident Response Plan?
Ransomware attacks never slow down or stop. Those malicious attempts to break in and take control of your files, intellectual property, or devices keep increasing. That also means your life sciences organization must adopt new and robust ways to reduce potential risks.
Along with ongoing training, your staff needs an incident response plan they can follow. Your IRP will address known issues like data loss, ransomware, and potential service outages. Those instructions show them how to detect, respond to, and begin recovering.
Suppose your life sciences network hasn’t received any ransomware threats yet. That’s great news! But if you did, do you want to go through that chaos again? Your company’s incident response and disaster recovery plans reduce your risks in the event of a ransomware attack.
Avoid Ransomware Attacks With BACS Consulting Group
The rise of ransomware activity and terrorist connections globally has raised the stakes for life sciences. Without your company’s incident response and disaster recovery plans, your organization remains a target for cybercriminals.
As a proactive IT company, we understand what’s at stake for your life sciences company. To avoid potential ransomware attacks and keep your research secure, partner with BACS Consulting Group. Contact us today or call (650) 383-3850.
