Help! My screen shows a large red skull and says all of my files are locked! These are words that no system administrator or business leader wants to hear from anyone using a computer on their network.

Sodinokibi ransomware has been known for some time, yet the attack on currency exchange Travelex brought this virus into the spotlight once again. Let’s find out more about Sodinokibi, how it works, and how to protect yourself from it.

The average ransomware demand continues to grow (up to $41,198 in Q3 2019, compared to $5,973 in the same period last year). One particular virus is to blame. We are talking about the Ruyk ransomware. This infamous malware shows: hackers are getting more serious than they have ever been before.

When someone asks you about the best ransomware protection, the first thing you’ll probably come up with is a backup. After all, backup is the only security practice that actually can get your infected data back. Antivirus software and firewalls are just the first line of defense, which is far from being 100% effective against ransomware. 

The cost of data loss varies greatly depending on a company’s size and industry. However, there are numbers to give you a general idea about the danger of data loss. According to IBM, the average data breach damage reaches as high as $3.92 million. And that’s just monetary costs, without taking into account dissatisfied customers and tarnished business reputation.

So, you or someone you know got hit by ransomware. Your files have been encrypted, or your screen has been locked, and you have no desire to fork out on getting the access back.

If you are here, you probably know what is ransomware and how ransomware works. Ransomware protection is necessary for any organization, as ransomware attacks entail significant costs, plus data recovery and down-time process can last for many weeks. 

Although at the end of the 2018 ransomware seemed to be slowing its pace on the cyber threat arena, 2019 has shown that this slowdown wasn’t anything but “the calm before the storm”.

The ransomware threat is huge, and it gets bigger every day. Chances are, it’s already affected you or someone you know, or will affect in the nearest future. Some estimates of the damages exceed one billion dollars, taking into account data loss, service outages, disrupted operations, and recovery.

Installing antivirus software (or AV) is often considered an important ransomware protection measure. And it is. It’s better to buy a subscription to antivirus software than to pay, on average, $36,295 to hackers or face significant financial and reputational damages.