THE RANSOMWARE!
Ransom and kidnapping has been a part of conventional crime for times immemorial. It was being done in a variety of ways for a variety of purposes, but the variant it created in the digital age, to start with, defied all wisdom. Instead of a human being or group of them, what was held hostage was data. As you all know by now that data is the new oil. After access is gained into the victims systems in different ways, the data is encrypted and a message is left behind to contact the ransomware gang to get the data encrypted. The data is released so to say, once the ransom is paid.
To get out of a ransomware attack for a business entity is next to impossible. If one wants to take on the ransomware gangs in the legal manner, there doesn’t seem to be enough light at the end of the tunnel. If the resilience bit is played, it takes time, money, and expertise to come back to the normal operational mode. The more the delay, the greater the impact on business. What about the credibility part and also the legal hassles / costs related to Personally Identifiable Information, PIIs, given the legal mandate. All in all it *becomes a battle for the enterprise, with a difficult road ahead, whatever may be the route taken for the ransomware attack crossroads.
Given this doomsday scenario, they do what the human beings are best at, to cave in. According to a survey 3 out of 5 Singaporean firms paid ransom during cyberattacks in 2023. Of these, 36 percent shelled out at least US $500,000, according to the data released by the survey firm Cohesity. Typically, the ransom is paid in crypto currency. According to Singapore’s Cyber Security Agency, CSA, the number of ransomware incidents last year “remained high” at 132 cases. It is pertinent to note that the ransomware activity has been rising around the globe.
Ransomware gangs look for weaknesses in unsuspecting companies or organisations to make big easy money. As per CSA, in Singapore manufacturing remained the No 1 industry, followed by construction of the sectors impacted by ransomware. It is presumed that the two sectors have been targeted as their level of cyber security might not have been as mature. While all the other issues enumerated above push them to pay ransom, they are more susceptible to being pressured to pay up to avert costly operational disruptions and project delays. If there is one crime which has become a trade, with no criminal worries, it is ransomware. It would still be long till we are able to do something concrete about it.
RANSOMWARE REIGNS SUPREME IN THE CYBER CRIME WORLD.
Sanjay Sahay
Have a nice evening.