CryptoLocker is on the Prowl
Protect Your Vital I.T. Assets Before Criminals Strike
It has come to our attention that CryptoLocker malware attacks are on the rise across Ireland. Reports (and our own experience) indicate that Irish businesses are suffering losses in the millions of euro. This brief post will help you to mitigate the threat of these attacks.
What is CryptoLocker?
Developed by criminals with the sole purpose of blackmailing innocent targets, CryptoLocker is a Trojan horse that infects your IT infrastructure and searches for unprotected files. Criminal malware locks applications and folders in IT hard drives and is passed cross-network to any device or appliance on that network including hard drives, backup drives and tapes, USB memory sticks, other networked appliances – as well as files and folders that are held in Cloud storage.
In short, CryptoLocker has one single-minded purpose: TO DESTROY ALL OF YOUR DATA, ANYWHERE YOU HOLD IT.
Once infected, files, folders and the data within them are ‘Locked’. The first sign that your systems have been compromised is an on-screen warning:
“We will destroy your data unless a Ransom is paid.”
frightening ransom demand and countdown clock appear, indicating how much time you have left until your data is destroyed. If you do not pay the blackmail money, your data will be lost forever.
Common Infection Methods
Emails and their attachments; websites which lead unknowing visitors to malicious Trojans.
Who is at Risk?
Windows users are the usual targets.
If You Are Infected, What Does CryptoLocker Do to Your Business?
CryptoLocker causes anxiety and anger among those targeted by criminal blackmail artists. But it does much more.
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BLACKMAIL: to rescue your infected IT systems and data from destruction, you will be forced to pay what could be tens of thousands of euro.
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LOSE YOUR BUSINESS: should you choose not to pay, you could lose all your data.
Everything will be destroyed: Every bit of financial data. All of your HR. All customer service communications. Your order books and invoices. Vital production, JIT, and ERP processes. Your suppliers. Stock and WIP. Internet and email.
Have you thought how long it would take to recreate and replace this data? Have you thought if your business could survive such an attack?
Protect Yourself Now
DB Computer Solutions offers a wide range of services to mitigate the threat of criminal attack.
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Backup and Disaster Recovery from DB Computer Solutions – robust backup processes protect data in almost real time by replicating vital data in both on- and off-site secure storage centres. Should your systems be compromised, our engineers restore data from these backed-up resources.
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IT Support Service from DB Computer Solutions – our engineers make sure your IT systems are patched with the latest service upgrades, including appropriate anti-malware applications and robust security software. As new security systems roll out in the face of new threats, we update your systems to make certain you have the latest protection.
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Implementation of Two-Factor Authentication
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Remote monitoring for continuing protection
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Quick escalation when trouble strikes
For More Information
See our Backup and Recovery Use Case Study for actions you can take NOW to mitigate the threat.
Or contact us to learn how you can mitigate the threat posed by these international blackmail artists.
Email: info@dbcomp.ie Tel: 061 480980