Oppenheimer vs Hinton? - Digital Threat Digest

Over the past year, there has been a 13% rise in ransomware attacks (according to Mimecast’s The State of Email Security Report 2023); an increase which equates to the number of attacks in the the previous five years combined. And with an ever-evolving threat landscape, ransomware attacks are predicted to keep increasing.
We’ve spoken to our technical and information security experts about the steps every organisation can take to mitigate the risk.
Ransomware is a type of malware designed to encrypt a victim’s information, effectively holding it hostage until a ransom is paid. These days, most ransomware campaigns come from ‘Ransomware as a Service’ providers, in which someone technical will write the malware code, sell it on the dark web to a threat actor and, as with legitimate software, provide support to the hacker to make sure that the malware is utilised effectively.
While most ransomware attacks are cyber criminals, in rare cases, as with other types of cyber attacks, ransomware may be beyond reasonable affordable commercial controls to defend if the malware exploits zero day vulnerabilities and come from highly resourced state sponsored actors or foreign intelligence services.
The best response to the ransomware threat is achieving a good balance between preventative measures that reduce the likelihood of a successful attack, and resilience/continuity measures that ensure that your organisation is positioned to withstand the ‘worst case’ scenario. Here’s what you can do:
We have years of experience supporting our clients to protect themselves effectively from digital threats. Our technical and information security specialists are available to share their expertise with you, so let’s talk.
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