Ransomware

Ransomware

The translation of the English term ‘ransom’ already clearly indicates its purpose: ransom money. In this case, Trojans, for example, establish themselves on the target system. Depending on the software used, the data is then either encrypted and/or control is taken over, often accompanied by pop-ups with ‘blackmail letters’ and corresponding demands for money, as well as the exfiltration of data.

Well-known examples here are Lock4j (Log4shell) and Wannacry. The topic of ransomware is live and will be one of the biggest challenges in the IT sector in the near future. The current forecast is alarming: 265 billion US dollars in damage globally per annum by 2031. In Germany alone, over 800 cases were reported in 2023, but it can be assumed that there are additional unreported cases.

This makes it all the more important to have not only a well-thought-out cyber resilience strategy, but also a recovery solution with offsite backup.