With ransomware attacks becoming increasingly sophisticated, they're also becoming more costly than the average data breach, as illustrated by a new report.
The latest Cost of a Data Breach Report from
Breach Response Costs Hit a
Data breaches in general - not just ransomware attacks - have become costlier than ever, with the average cost of a breach reaching a record-high
The average cost of a ransomware attack is even higher -
Ransomware attacks are also being perpetrated far more quickly these days. A report from IBM Security X-Force found that the length of time it takes to pull off a ransomware attack plummeted by 94% from 2019 - 2021, falling from just over two months to less than four days.
Critical Infrastructure a Vulnerable
According to
Only 21% of critical infrastructure organizations have adopted a "zero trust" security model - a system that assumes a network may already be compromised and uses artificial intelligence and analytics to continuously validate users' connections to a network - according to
Ransomware threats against critical infrastructure continue to evolve. On
Zeppelin has targeted healthcare and medical organizations, as well as defense contractors, educational institutions, manufacturers and technology companies in the
"The FBI and CISA do not encourage paying ransom as payment does not guarantee victim files will be recovered," the advisory read. "Furthermore, payment may also embolden adversaries to
Some
Reducing Your Risks
As we've discussed in recent blogs, most breaches have the potential to cause significant harm to affected individuals, and you may be required to report breaches to a privacy commissioner. The fact that breaches are now becoming even costlier means being prepared is more important than ever.
There are many ways to reduce your risk of a ransomware attack, such as having phishing exercises to educate your staff on risks, ensuring your operating systems and software are up to date, and securing and monitoring your network connections. You should also have an incident response plan that is tested regularly so you're prepared to respond to a breach.
The lawyers in our Privacy, Data Protection & Cybersecurity team have wide-ranging experience advising clients on developing strategies to prevent and respond to breaches, including ransomware attacks. We also act as counsel for clients responding to a breach. Download our cybersecurity checklist to assess your organization's current cybersecurity strategy.
The content of this article is intended to provide a general guide to the subject matter. Specialist advice should be sought about your specific circumstances.
Ms Kristél Kriel
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