The UN estimates that Cybercrime will cost $2 trillion by 2019. WannaCry Ransomeware
recently affected 200,000 computers and affected 150 countries.
Cybercriminals made estimated illegal profits of up to $445 billion last year, which is larger than the GDP of 160 nations,
including countries like Ireland, Finland and Denmark, and most of these incidents were a result of internal breaches.
Ransomware is a malicious software designed to block access to a computer until a sum of money is paid by the victim. Although Ransomware has thus far been targeted at individuals, at present, it is being targeted at many large businesses worldwide.
Due to the recent catastrophic digital security threat the world faced, Echelon met Nishan Wimalachandra CEO of Exire Technologies along with their Security Specialist Livan Jayasekara to discuss how Exire Technologies could help prevent similar future incidents; according to them, many Sri Lankan Companies could have prevented this attack if the right technology, which was already in Exire Technologies’ possession, was deployed.
What is at stake due to Ransomware?
Nishan Wimalachandra: We believe the most terrifying experience is that the hacker could destroy all the data in that computer including emails, images, documents, login credentials, banking data, passwords, electronic certifications, credit card details, and even intimate details if the victim does not pay the hacker. What id the most important memories your computer held of your family and friends were gone in a few hours if the ransom is not paid (this includes your cloud-based backups as well)?
What is the worst-case scenario?
Even if the ransom was paid to get your life back and access to your computer data. there is no guarantee that your privacy will remain private. After a Ransomware attack, your privacy is no longer private.
How are businesses affected by Ransomware?
A Ransomware attack may steal everything a business has built in a lifetime. Once attacked, everything the company had been working on will be gone forever, including R&D, Blueprints, customer details, intimate financial details, the patent-worthy technology that is not yet registered, recipes, pricing, marketing strategies, vendor details, contracts, legal documents and confidential dealings with other corporate or government agencies.Once a business is affected, there is no point going ahead with existing strategies and tactical business plans as the hacker may sell the stolen data to the highest bidder regardless whether or not you pay the ransom. Ransomware can take away a company’s competitive advantage and bring it to ruins within a few hours.
Q: Can Exire Technologies help protect businesses from Ransomware?
Yes, NetSHIELD of SnoopWall Inc. introduced by us secures mission-critical and highly valuable confidential information behind firewalls with an award-winning patented NetSHIELD appliance, and WinSHIELD on Windows and MobileSHIELD on Google Android and Apple iOS mobile devices. This next generation technology detects and blocks all remote control, eavesdropping and spying. NetSHIELD provides critical IntraNet security that firewalls and antivirus systems are not designed to address.
Q: How do you know if a system has critical vulnerabilities that are easily exploitable?
Livan Jayasekera: NetSHIELD possesses security features that could detect critical vulnerabilities of systems, and its scalable solution allows you to harden your network and cover your assets with ironclad network access control and vulnerability management.
Q: Are Sri Lankan businesses vulnerable to Ransomware, and what is the way out?
Yes, Ransomware is a global threat, therefore any computing device that connects to the internet should be frequently hardened.
NetSHIELD runs a comprehensive internal network evaluation that can help businesses understand the following:
Baseline Security – ensures to inform you who and what is really on your network, this also helps to build a trust list to identify unknown and unwanted assets.
Threat Prevention – identifies zero-hour malware not detected with Anti Virus and strengthens security infrastructure by capturing real-time phishing attacks with no false positives.
Vulnerability Assessment and Compliance Reporting – enables the discovery of vulnerabilities, prioritizes them on your network and runs compliance assessments for PCI – ISO etc.
Q: What is the solution given by NetSHIELD to battle Cybercrime?
The human attack surface is to reach 4 billion people by 2020. As the world goes digital, humans have moved ahead of machines as the top target for cybercriminals. Hackers smell blood now, not silicon. Up to 200 billion IoT devices will need security by 2020. Regardless of which estimate proves right, the bottom line is that the digital attack surface will grow massively over the next five years. With the expansion of IoT, from home appliances to security monitoring systems, new security challenges are becoming pervasive. Without proactive testing, networks are more vulnerable than ever before. Hackers have new entry points via which they cannot only gain unauthorized access into our homes or business network but also intrude our privacy.
Corporates can take charge of their corporate network(s) with a highly scalable, affordable and simple-to-manage network access control (NAC) solution, NetSHIELD, introduced by Exire Technologies. They can gain control and confident oversight of trusted LAN(s), manage compliance reporting, audit assets, identify vulnerabilities, and defend against malicious insiders, rogue access, zero-day malware, phishing attacks and data exfiltration. In a world of digital catastrophes, there are only winners and losers.
Strengthening your IT infrastructure is critical to be ahead of the game. Talk to Exire Technologies; they are able to help you secure your business.
Source: ECHELON Magazine June 2017
