Very often yes. Typically, the attack happens through loopholes given by malicious applications that were downloaded from the Web. Another very common way is through incoming e-mails with attachments or links to sites strategically designed to harm users. Your computer can become vulnerable by the simple fact of opening the attachment or clicking on the malicious link.

Usually hackers leave threatening messages on affected machines. But if the information is not important or if you have a backup, by formatting the computer and taking precautions not to get infected again nothing will happen. There is a new type of attack where hackers steal your information and if you do not agree to pay the ransom they threaten to share your information on the Internet.

I don’t think it is possible to explain this subject with a simple answer. But let’s just cover a few topics on the subject below. The best option is to hire a consulting company or a professional that specializes in the area of cyber security.

• Organization – A good way to start prevention is to organize and document networks, computers, and systems. Having a good documentation of the IT park can help a lot in the prevention process. Be aware of what software is allowed and used. Create rules so that ordinary users do not install any program on the computers. Know who are the computers, laptops and cell phones that have access to the physical network and Wi-Fi in your home or business.
• Strong passwords – Don’t use the same passwords for everything. Avoid birth dates and birthdays. If possible install a password manager that will always suggest and store a password with a high level of difficulty to crack.
• Security Solutions – A good security solution includes in its toolkit a good antivirus and a number of other tools with the purpose of reporting, preventing and neutralizing cyber-attacks. The value of a safe, as well as the time and security apparatus invested in protecting it, is directly linked to the list of items you intend to keep inside. If you have very valuable data on your computers then make an equivalent investment to protect your information.
• Effective backup policies – Have a good backup policy. Regrettably we have had cases where a client being attacked by ransomware was quite reassured that their backups were up to date. However, when returning the backup files, it was discovered that they were also encrypted by the ransomware. Also remember that a backup is always a second copy of the same information. Making a copy of the information on an external disk and then deleting the information from the computer’s hard drive does not make it a backup. Nowadays there are very secure ways of performing backups. Data center redundant backup policies are the best.
• Be careful with email – A lot of bad stuff can get into computers through email. Establish policies so that the e-mails used in the company are only for professional purposes. You can also configure security applications to not allow links and files attached to e-mails to be downloaded, opened, or accessed.
• Beware of software cracking programs – Software cracking programs are always from dubious sources. But what are they and what is the purpose of these programs? Imagine that you download the demo version of a certain program. But after a few days of use, the program stops working because the demo period has expired. The way to continue using the program is to buy a legal copy of it. But usually there are sites on the Internet that can provide you “free” software that will crack your program to make it work as if you had bought the original version. Be very careful with these programs. You cannot believe that someone would create such a program and not want anything in return. If this program opens a virtual door in your computer to be accessed after 6 months you will never suspect that the attack came from a trojan horse that entered your computer six months ago.

Just as in a grand theft there is a high level of planning, so too in a cyber attack.

For a thief to enter a house, someone needs to leave a breach open or he needs to find a way around the alarm systems. Likewise, a cyber criminal will try to get a partner to enter your computer to open the door for him to enter. These partners may be programs of dubious provenance downloaded from the Web or sent via email. If he can’t infiltrate these through these “accomplices”, the job will be much more difficult.

Once the program is installed on the user’s machine, the user is responsible for opening the door and informing the hacker that he has a machine available for hacking. Once this is done, the data encryption process begins.

After attacking the machine, the ransomware can easily spread to infect machines on the network, targeting mainly servers. If the servers are hacked the entire company will be affected.

Of course, holidays and vacations are the main periods for cyber attacks. On these days the surveillance is less effective and as fewer people are working in the company, it is more difficult to notice suspicious movements.

In the year 2020 more than 500 million dollars in ransom payments were made.

Normalmente eles utilizam RSA [Rivest-Shamir-Adleman]-2048 e AES [Advanced Encryption Standard] com 256 bits.

In first place, with 29% of the attacks, the invasion happens because of downloading an infected file or clicking on a malicious link. In second place, with 21% of the cases, is the attack via RDP [Remote Desktop Protocol], which is a means of access to provide remote access to Windows machines.

It is called Ragnar Locker, this technique uses Windows Virtual Machine system to invade othe machines and servers, encrypt databases and all sort of files in the victim’s environment.

Yes. Abnormal slowness in disk processing and high memory consumption are suspicious behaviors that need to be carefully evaluated to see if an attack is in progress.

Not at all, unfortunately. In 2020, 65% of ransomware attacks affected data in the cloud. So having the data in the cloud doesn’t mean it’s actually protected.

In 15% of the attacks that occurred in 2020, administrators were able to stop the propagation process even after the intrusion was successful, thus preventing further damage to the environment.

There are a few options on the market and usually the key words “digital risk protection” appear in the product name. Due to the high number of cyber attacks, in some countries such as France, insurers are removing ransomware from insurance coverage.