One of our clients has recently experienced a total loss of data in a ransom-ware attack that penetrated their local network; destroying out not only their locally stored data – but their offsite backup as well. This has had a massive impact on their business and really stretched their accounts team as they had to perform their day to day tasks manually, as well as recreate existing records. Mark Fenwick of Glenn Cook Technologies shares how you can secure your data:
The spread of this malicious activity is often as simple as the servers running scripts or backup tools that replicate data from one server to another across a drive mapping. When a production server or workstation is infected not only does it have access to the production data, but also the backup data.
Ensure your backups are off-domain, with a virtual air gap to protect against the spread of malicious events such as virus & malware. This ensures infection cannot spread from production to your backups. At Glenn Cook we believe every business should consider maintaining backup retention for a minimum of 90 days but preferably 12 months.
After seeing the affects first-hand; Helm highly recommend you speak with your IT provider about how your data is secured and ensure your business has a robust, offsite backup to prevent a catastrophic outcome in the event of a ransom-ware or similar attack.