2021-10-28 Beware of Ransomware: Protecting Yourself Against the Mother of all Cyber-security Threats

As IT service providers to the healthcare industry, we hear it all the time…”Ransomware? Big deal. Our practice is too small to attract hackers. Why would someone come after our data?”
The fact is, in today’s digital environment, any healthcare organization with a petty cash box and a reliance on computer systems and data is an attractive Ransomware target for hackers. Need proof? Did you know the value of a social security number on the ‘dark web’ is about $4 – but an individual patient record will fetch about $40?

How does it work? Hackers, who in many cases have been on your network for weeks conducting surveillance, use Ransomware to infect an employee’s workstation device or server and encrypt their data files, rendering them inaccessible until you pay a sum of money via Bitcoin or other cryptocurrencies to the hacker for a Ransomware key to decrypt the encryption.
The hacker is essentially ‘holding your data hostage’ and selling it back to you for a hefty ransom. It gets worse. With many new strains of Ransomware, if you fail to pay the ransom demand, the hacker will publish your data to a public website.

The question is no longer “Is my data valuable to a hacker?” but rather “How valuable is my data
to my entire organization?”

Todd Gooden, a 25-year IT managed services innovator, whose firm specializes in supporting the healthcare field, will share a proven five-step tactical plan for protecting your practice from Ransomware infections and attacks – from preventative technical measures and early-stage threat recognition to backing-up and updating systems and policies for limiting user access.

He will also provide a brief synopsis of the safeguarding and preventative measures available to you - so you can choose the best course of action to meet your practice’s needs and avoid
unnecessary spending.