Ransomware attacks are skyrocketing, both on businesses and, increasingly, against local governments. There are different and evolving types of ransomware attacks, often beginning with something as simple as a malicious link in an email, which can leave organizations both large and small with crippled infrastructure and mounting costs to get their systems back.
Small business loan provider Quickbridge put together a white paper and infographic breaking down the state of ransomware attacks, particularly on vulnerable small businesses. The infographic below breaks down what ransomware is, how attacks occur, how to protect your infrastructure, and the staggering economic and security impact of ransomware attacks over the past several years.
Ransomware protection starts with knowing what kind of attack you're dealing with; crypto ransomware encrypts your data and files until a decryption key is provided (after you pay up), whereas locker ransomware freezes users out of their entire operating system. The white paper cites that more than 4,000 attacks have occurred since 2016 and that nearly half of small businesses have been breached in the past year, with 39 percent of those malware attacks classified as ransomware.
As for the cost of all this: $11.9 billion in ransomware damages are projected globally by the end of 2019.
About Our Expert
Rob Marvin writes features, news, and trend stories on all manner of emerging technologies. Beats include: startups, business and venture capital, blockchain and cryptocurrencies, AI, augmented and virtual reality, IoT and automation, legal cannabis tech, social media, streaming, security, mobile commerce, M&A, and entertainment. Rob was previously Assistant Editor and Associate Editor in PCMag's Business section. Prior to that, he served as an editor at SD Times. He graduated from Syracuse University's S.I. Newhouse School of Public Communications. You can also find his business and tech coverage on Entrepreneur and Fox Business. Rob is also an unabashed nerd who does occasional entertainment writing for Geek.com on movies, TV, and culture. Once a year you can find him on a couch with friends marathoning The Lord of the Rings trilogy--extended editions.
