Ransomware, Data Breach Drills, and Cyber Liability Insurance: Doing Business As Usual

As the rise in data breaches continues, more aggressive measures are being sought to ward off a potential data breach no matter how big or small businesses are. Dealing with hacks seems to be just the cost of doing business. But that cost shouldn’t just focus on recovering from a hack. Preparing for a hack is more important than how you’ll deal with one if it happens, and knowing what you can do is the first step in securing your company’s data.

Who is Targeted by Ransomware?

It’s a common misconception that companies aren’t a target if they aren’t involved in large-scale work, like stock exchanges, government programs, defense contracting, or hospital networks. Most hacking groups are motivated by money alone and are looking for easy to find weaknesses anywhere they can. The average company has more resources to protect against hackers than it did a decade ago, but ransomware has become more frequent and far more sophisticated. Ransomware crews are even providing tech support and customer service for its hackers. Hackers will target any business they can, big or small. Although the data of a small, local business may not seem like a prime target, failing to anticipate an attack can still cost a business in money, time, and reputation. Any business is a prime target for ransomware.

Data Breach Drills

It’s no longer a question of if a business will get hacked anymore, but it’s simply a matter of when. In response, companies are beginning to run their own “fire drills” to prep for a data breach. These drills do everything from measure preparedness and readiness to employing third parties with hacking expertise to make the exercise realistic. Drills show the different types of hacks that can target a business. While many assume that the hacks are sophisticated, often they are simple and rely on the unassuming employees. Often, they are as simple as emails that look legitimate and trick unsuspecting employees into opening a document with embedded macros. Testing employees is the best way to demonstrate the need to be vigilant. These drills can show the weaknesses in your system as well as the time it will take to discover the breach and the financial and data implications of said breach. By preparing in advance, companies who put in the time and effort to do these drills are in better shape than companies who don’t. Hackers are looking for the easiest targets, and even if your company isn’t perfect, having stronger defenses ready than others can leave your small business less vulnerable.

Cyber Liability Insurance

Because getting hacked and paying a ransom is becoming a mundane business expense, a new industry has popped up: cyber liability insurance. Insurance companies will map out the customer’s “attack surface” as part of the underwriting process and may cover the cost of a ransomware recovery when it is critical to the business’s survival. By providing financial incentives, the insurance industry can help businesses increase their preparedness and cybersecurity practices.

Ransomware is a lucrative business. The targets are limitless and most companies will find themselves unprepared for the sophisticated attacks. By running drills, preparing staff, and looking into liability insurance, businesses can focus their security budget on avoiding breaches, not just responding to them.

Our client’s data is important to us, and our experience in cybersecurity and data protection allows us to guide our customers through best practices to help them keep their company’s data secure. We’re proud to offer The CSR Readiness Pro suite to help reduce the risk of your data falling into the wrong hands. It all starts with the CSR Readiness Pro Risk Assessment and there’s further assistance available through an award-winning patented Breach Reporting Service. You can develop your organization’s protocols to increase data security both on and offline once you’ve identified potential gaps in your cybersecurity measures using the self-assessment tool.

Contact AccuShred today for more information about CSR Readiness Pro to help keep your data secure.