Government of Nunavut Slowly Recovers from Ransomware Attack

Government of Nunavut Slowly Recovers from Ransomware Attack

Information Security, News
Government of Nunavut Slowly Recovers from Ransomware Attack The Government of Nunavut in northern Canada is slowly recovering nearly two weeks after its computer systems were crippled by a ransomware attack. The ransomware attack on the Government of Nunavut showed that this type of cyber-attack isn’t going away and organizations need to be prepared in preventing and mitigating this attack. Last November 3, the Government of Nunavut disclosed that on November 2 of this year a “new and sophisticated type of ransomware” blocked government workers from accessing files on various servers and workstations. Ransomware is a type of malicious software (malware) that encrypts data, turning data into code and demands a ransom payment from victims in exchange for the decryption keys that would unlock the encrypted data. As a result…
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How to Protect Your Organization’s Network from 3rd Party Breach

How to Protect Your Organization’s Network from 3rd Party Breach

Information Security
How to Protect Your Organization’s Network from 3rdParty Breach Computers in nearly 400 dental offices across the U.S. had been infected with ransomware after DDS Safe, a cloud management software that backs up client data for the affected dental offices was compromised by still an unidentified attacker or attackers. This incident shows the need to protect your organization’s network from 3rdparty breach. Last August 26th, theWisconsin Dental Associationthrough its Executive Director Mark Paget announced that nearly 400 dental offices across the U.S., with a small percentage of these dental offices based in Wisconsin, had been unable to access their client data as a result of the compromised at DDS Safe, a service from The Digital Dental Record, a subsidiary of the Wisconsin Dental Association. Days following the ransomware attack, PerCSoft,…
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Coordinated Ransomware Attack Used for the First Time in 22 Local Governments in Texas

Coordinated Ransomware Attack Used for the First Time in 22 Local Governments in Texas

Information Security, News
Coordinated Ransomware Attack Used for the First Time in 22 Local Governments in Texas Ransomware attacks on local governments are becoming all too common these days. Past ransomware attacks, while targeted, were conducted separately. The latest ransomware attack on 22 local governments across Texas marks a shift in the way ransomware attacks are launched: in a coordinated manner. The Texas Department of Information Resources, in a press statement, said that on the morning of August 16, 2019, a total of 22 local governments in the State of Texas reported a ransomware attack. While not naming the affected local governments, the Texas Department of Information Resources said majority of the victims are smaller local governments. Ransomware is a type of malicious software (malware) that attackers use to infect computers. In a…
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2018 Year in Review: Old Known Security Vulnerabilities Still Wreak Havoc

2018 Year in Review: Old Known Security Vulnerabilities Still Wreak Havoc

Information Security, IT Support
2018 Year in Review: Old Known Security Vulnerabilities Still Wreak Havoc In 2018, publicly known security vulnerabilities continued to be exploited by cyber criminals. One of these known security vulnerabilities is WannaCry, a malicious software (malware) thought to be “old news”, but still continues to hunt for its next victim. What Is WannaCry? WannaCry is known for infecting more than 300,000 computers in 150 countries in less than 24 hours on May 12, 2017. WannaCry attackers infiltrated these hundreds of thousands of computers by using EternalBlue – referring to both the software vulnerability in Microsoft's Windows operating system and the exploit believed to be developed by the U.S. National Security Agency (NSA). Just a few days before the May 16thWannaCry attack, that is, on April 14, 2017, the EternalBlue exploit…
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Cyber Security Is a Growing Issue for Nonprofit Organizations

Cyber Security Is a Growing Issue for Nonprofit Organizations

Information Security, IT Support
Cyber Security Is a Growing Issue for Nonprofit Organizations  Save the Children, an international nonprofit children's relief and development organization, revealed that a cyber attacker or attackers tricked the organization into paying out almost $1 million. The cyber incident on Save the Children shows that cyber security isn’t only the concern of profit organizations, but also by not-for-profit organizations. While the Save the Children’s cyber incident disclosure was done via the organization’s 2017 tax report, this cyber incident only came to light with the recent report of the Boston Globe. In its tax report, Save the Children said that in April 2017, an unknown cyber attacker or attackers posing as an employee of Save the Children tricked the organization to transfer $997,400 to a fraudulent entity in Japan on the…
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Canadian Towns Hit by Ransomware Cyberattacks; Lessons Learned from These Attacks

Canadian Towns Hit by Ransomware Cyberattacks; Lessons Learned from These Attacks

Information Security
Canadian Towns Hit by Ransomware Cyberattacks; Lessons Learned from These Attacks The Canadian town of Midland in Ontario recently acknowledged it has paid ransom after experiencing a crippling ransomware cyberattack. In a statement, Midland Townsaid that it has “initiated the process to pay the ransom in exchange for the decryption keys.” The town added, “Although not ideal, it is in our best interest to bring the system back online as quickly as possible." What Is Ransomware A ransomware is a type of a malicious software (malware) that encrypts files, making them inaccessible to users, and demands from victims ransom in exchange for the decryption keys that unlock the encrypted files. Ransomware attackers typically ask their victims to pay ransom in the form of cryptocurrency like Bitcoin and convert it to…
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Why Companies Continue to be Victimized by WannaCry

Why Companies Continue to be Victimized by WannaCry

Information Security, Security
Why Companies Continue to be Victimized by WannaCry The latest cyber incident at the Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Company (TSMC), the world's biggest contract manufacturer of chips for companies including Apple, is a reminder to companies of the dangers of unpatched Windows operating systems. TSMC Chief Executive Officer C. C. Wei said in a press conferencethat a variant of the 2017 WannaCry ransomware caused the shut down of several of the company’s manufacturing plants in Taiwan in the first weekend of August this year. Wei said the WannaCry infection happened when an unnamed supplier connected a computer laden with WannaCry to TSMC’s internal network. The malware then spread swiftly to the company’s internal network and hit the manufacturing plants in Tainan, Hsinchu and Taichung – plants that produce chips for Apple.  TSMC,…
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Effects of a Cyberattack: City of Atlanta Experience

Effects of a Cyberattack: City of Atlanta Experience

Information Security
Learning from the City of Atlanta Cyberattack It has been over 2 months since the City of Atlanta suffered a cyberattack, but a city official said at a public meeting that the effects of the cyberattack seem “to be growing every day”. On March 22, 2018, the City of Atlantaexperienced a ransomware cyberattack that affected the city’s multiple software applications and computers. A ransomware is a malicious software (malware) that locks files on infected computers and asks for ransom payment to unlock files. The City of Atlanta, in a statement, said that as a result of the attack, "some City data is encrypted and customers are not able to access City applications". Atlanta Information Management head Daphne Rackley told the Atlanta City Council that more than a third of the…
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How to Protect Your Company’s Server from Ransomware Attacks

How to Protect Your Company’s Server from Ransomware Attacks

Security, Servers
How to Protect Your Company’s Server from Ransomware Attacks Your company’s server is the center of your organization’s IT operations. The server is where your company’s critical data are archived. All of your organization’s computer workstations are also linked to it. Your company’s physical server is where server software works and provides services such as file transfers to other connected computers. Because of the server’s core functions, this has become the target by ransomware cyberattackers – a point of entry where they believe they can make the most out of the attacks. What is a Ransomware? A ransomware is a malicious software, also known as malware, that encrypts computer files preventing users to access their files and asks for ransom payment, typically in the form of Bitcoin, to decrypt or…
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