A new Chubb report provides insight into the recent growth of ransomware attacks across industries and underscores best practices companies should take to combat the associated risks.
"Ransomware is not new, but has evolved over time," said Michael Tanenbaum, head of Chubb Cyber North America. "In today's environment, the impact of a company's system becoming inoperable can result in severe and long-term disruption for a business. Some ransom demands have grown to the six- and seven-figure range, so it is critical for businesses to understand the increased sophistication of ransomware, what procedures and systems need to be in place to mitigate the risk, and what solutions they need to protect themselves should they experience an attack."
Manufacturing accounted for 23 percent, and professional services 30 percent, of the total number of ransomware incidents reported to Chubb across all industries through the third quarter. Manufacturing companies were more likely to be targeted because of their need to quickly restore operations, and professional service firms, which rely heavily on email, often were affected because of vulnerabilities associated with phishing attacks. Chubb pointed out, however, that ransomware can affect any company, regardless of size or industry.
Chubb found that the most common strains of ransomware included Bitpaymer and Ryuk, which use a banking Trojan, such as Trickbot or Emotet, to infiltrate the victim's system.
Chubb also found that an emerging ransomware strain called Sodinokibi specifically targets its victims and demands larger than average ransoms.
According to Chubb:
- Malware claims, including ransomware, have risen to 18 percent of all cyber claims in 2019 from an average of 12 percent over the past five years.
- Ransomware accounted for 40 percent of manufacturer cyber claims in 2019 thus far.
- Ransomware accounted for 23 percent of cyber claims for smaller businesses (revenue less than $25 million) in 2019.
"As bad actors are continuously changing their attack techniques and increasing the complexity of the ransomware, it's imperative to implement multiple layers of preventative measures to mitigate potential incidents and ensure a reaction plan is in place if an attack occurs," added Anthony Dolce, vice president, cyber lead, for Chubb North America Financial Lines Claims. "By regularly backing up data files and securing those backups offline, properly educating employees, investing in state-of the-art security and antivirus software, and purchasing a comprehensive cyber insurance policy, businesses can be better prepared and protected no matter the threat."
Learn more: www.chubb.com/cyber.
Victoria Spears
Victoria Prussen Spears is senior vice president of Meyerowitz Communications Inc., a law firm marketing communications consulting company. A graduate of Sarah Lawrence College and Brooklyn Law School, Ms. Spears was an attorney at a leading New York City law firm before joining Meyerowitz Communications. She may be contacted at [email protected].