CORPORATIONS DON'T
Lucideus, an IT risk assessment and digital security services provider, has a new cyber risk management platform called SAFE, which flags vulnerability to ransomware along with other aspects of cyber security.
SAFE (Security Assessment Framework for Enterprise) is customised for every organisation’s specific needs and integrated on top of existing security measures. It maintains a real-time watch on the company’s cyber security, monitoring every IT asset, from servers down to smartphones and PCs. SAFE is tested by the simulation of real hacks, DDOS attacks, etcetera to check if anything is vulnerable. It also ensures that the company’s cybersecurity conforms to required regulatory norms in different regions.
SAFE offers a simple, single number (05, with 5 best) to rank the cybersecurity in a firm. What’s more, it offers a peer comparison, informing the client where it rates in comparison to competitors.
Lucideus CEO Saket Modi claims, “SAFE can safeguard you against multiple kinds of advanced cyber attacks. For example, ransomware incidents rose by over 40 per cent globally in the last year. SAFE used in conjunction with any reputed antimalware solution will reduce the probability of a Ransomware hack by over 50 per cent. “ Kaspersky Lab is one of the world's leading IT security firms. We asked Kaspersky to give pointed advice to readers. The emailed responses to our queries are given below: Q1. Does Kaspersky have specific products to defend against ransomware for enterprise / individuals? Kaspersky Lab offers various levels of protection for your home and office. We have inbuilt features in our solutions like System Watcher that takes care of Ransomware. For Non-Kaspersky users, Kaspersky Lab provides a free antiransomware tool that is available for all to download.
The Dutch Police, Europol, Intel Security and Kaspersky Lab jointly run the No More Ransom project— a non-commercial initiative that aims to inform about ransomware and help recover data. This portal https://www.nomoreransom.org/ carries 50 decryption tools, (seven made by Kaspersky). Q2. What advice would you give on safe practices? How to protect against any ransomware: 1. Make sure that you back up your
important files regularly 2. Regularly check that your back
up copy is ok 3. Fine-tune antispam e-mail settings and never open attachments from an unknown sender 4. Trust no one, literally. Malicious links can be sent by your friends on social media, your colleagues or clients whose accounts have been compromised 5.Enable ‘Show file extensions’ option in the Windows settings. This will make it much easier to distinguish potentially malicious files. You should be warned to stay away from file extensions like “exe”, “vbs” and “scr”. Scammers could use several extensions to masquerade a malicious file as a video, photo, or a document 6.Regularly update your operating system, browser, antivirus, and other programmes 7.Use a robust antivirus programme to protect your system from ransomware 8.If you discover a rogue or unknown process on your machine, cut off the internet connection immediately. There’s still a chance you can restore the files. However, this tip, unfortunately, would not work in all cases 9. If you are unlucky to have your files encrypted, don’t pay the ransom, unless the instant access to some of your files is critical. Each payment fuels this unlawful business 10.If you have been infected by ransomware, you should try to find out the name of the malware: maybe it’s an older version and it is relatively simple to restore the files