The current buzz in the data security community centers around one word: malware. Ask any cyber security expert the greatest threat to businesses currently, and they will tell you: attacks from malicious malware, and in particular, ransomware, a family of malware that infects computer networks and then demands “ransom” to restore encrypted files. Last summer, the current threat was analyzed at 1 million new malware threats emerging daily—and the trend has only accelerated.
Malware is the term used for any malicious software, meaning the software is designed to disrupt your operations, gather sensitive and critical data, or display ads. Again, ransomware, as its name implies, demands payment in return for restored access or encrypted files. There are cases of malware that are targeted toward obtaining secure information from a specific organization or industry, such as hospitals.
With the rise of malware, there are some realities that all businesses need to acknowledge, and should be noted particularly by those individuals charged with ensuring endpoint protection against malicious attacks:
- No business or organization is immune from malware. A targeted attack in the U.S. hit users of major websites including the New York Times and the BBC this past March. Multiple ad networks delivered the malware in an attempt to install ransomware on the users’ computers.
- The cost of taking no action can be steep. A malware-hacked hospital in Los Angeles resorted to paying the cyber criminals $17,000 in bitcoin, a form of online payment, when it realized doing so was the quickest way to restore its computer systems and business operations.
- There are effective ways to prevent malware attacks. The best antidote to malware is proactively detecting the threat before it has a chance to attack your system and the damage has been done.
CHI Corporation provides several data security solutions to protect businesses from malware threats:
- Palo Alto Networks, a leading network security provider, offers a comprehensive data security platform that incorporates a firewall and advanced threat protection.
- Extreme Networks’ security solution includes analytics that provide situational awareness of threats, both external and internal. The Extreme Networks Intrusion Prevention System ensures threat containment by detecting attacker activity, blocking the attacker’s network access immediately, and reconfiguring the network to protect itself against the attacker’s means of attack.
Be proactive in protecting your organization against the threats of malware. Contact CHI Corporation today to discuss the right data security solution for your business.
Trackbacks/Pingbacks