What Ransomware Delivers
One early morning in May 2017, a nurse walked into her ward. She switched on her computer, ready to log in for the busy day ahead. She checked her emails and noticed an urgent message from IT, stating, “Shut down your computer as soon as you see this message. The hospital has been infected with malicious software.” A sense of panic set in. Hospital IT officials went around to each section and ward in the hospital to ensure all of the computers were shut down. The hospital itself, effectively, was shut down, having to turn patients away.
The hospital in question was one of many organizations, small and large, across the world that had been infected with the ransomware variant, WannaCry. In 2019, over 500 schools in the U.S. were attacked by ransomware. Among the many hospitals hit by ransomware, three had to close their doors to all but critical patients. New ransomware families continue to enter our networks, encrypting our files and documents and causing untold and ongoing damage. This seemingly intractable position is why we invented CryptoStopper.
This is our story of fighting against a tidal wave and seeing it turn. Ransomware is a sinister force, but with the right approach and tools to augment our anti-ransomware stance, we can take on the global wave of cybercrime with extortion at its core.
