Protect Against Ransomware with Panzura
If the mere thought of Ransomware scares you, join the club. You lock your doors and windows; you get a guard dog; you don’t walk alone on the street after dark; and still criminals can get to you – through your internet-connected computer. All it takes is one poorly-timed mistake – for instance, clicking on a hacker’s innocent-looking but malicious link – and you’re on the hook. The malware that downloads after that click will encrypt data on a computer or an entire network so it cannot be accessed without a decryption key – available for a specific ransom in the form of electronic currency (bitcoin), which is only partially traceable. This form of theft runs the gamut, from the very personal instance of having photograph files locked to millions of dollars’ worth of business or government files.
In the Panzura article, Stopping Costly Ransomware Attacks with Immutable Data Architecture, Chief Product Officer Rich Weber explains the fastest growing cybercrime – ransomware – and how it costs governments and businesses millions of dollars.
Panzura storage solutions transform complex and expensive traditional data storage models to the cloud. Because they are based on “immutable data architecture,” Panzura storage solutions are resistant to cyber attacks and also reduce the impact or spread of an undetected attack. Weber’s article explains that immutable data architecture ensures that data which is written to storage is immediately encrypted and cannot be changed. When the user changes the stored file, s/he is actually creating a changed copy of the stored file/object, and that gets stored as new data. Using Panzura, the ransom malware cannot encrypt your files because they cannot be modified. Stored files are synchronized every minute, so if something goes amok, the recovery point is only up to a minute past.
As Weber points out, since existing data is preserved as original objects in the object storage, any file encrypted by ransomware code can be immediately reverted back to its last state prior to infection. This can be easily done for a single file, entire directories, or even the entire global file system.
Every time a ransomware thief is paid by a company or an individual under attack, they are emboldened and empowered to devise new, more complicated malware that is harder and harder for virus protection software to detect. Talk about a vicious circle. And, let’s face it, even if your IT department employs antivirus software, blocks dangerous sites and actively scans network storage devices, people will be people – sometimes we get busy and casually click on a link from someone we know only to realize their email account was hacked, and we just allowed malware into our “house.” At times like that, it’s good to know that Panzura is working to stay one step ahead of cybercriminals, and your data is secure.
For more information on adding a Panzura storage solution to your cybersecurity arsenal, contact Applied Software today for a quick discovery call. Let the industry experts at Applied help you investigate the best Panzura solution for your firm’s enterprise infrastructure.
