Internet safety always remains a matter of concern for businesses, as hackers keep coming up with innovative ideas to breach the wall of security to reach confidential information. Like the recent malware threat, that seems to have surpassed all old concepts. This new malware does more than encrypting your information. It locks your crucial data and demand ransom money to unlock it! Sounds crazy?
Welcome to the world of Ransomware where no computer system is safe. It doesn’t matter if you use a small PC at home, or run an enterprise network or servers of government agencies. Ransomware can target any PC, and can ruin its crucial apps that support the web browser and most importantly blocks access to important data.
Ransomware is very fast, smart and this is now a big business for many. Just within a few years, several variants got released and spread like wildfire. One of the Malware was KimcilWare which was the scary one that poses greater threat to Magento ecommerce websites. This in turn means organizations’ critical financial data as well as individuals’ banking info are now at equal risk.
Here we discuss various facts of Ransomware attack and also explain ways to protect your eCommerce site.
Kimcilware Attack – How it happens
The hacker uses just a small program or script to find its way to a vulnerable server. In fact there are 2 types of script involved. First script encrypts entire data and attaches a kimcilware extension to encrypted files. Second script attaches the (.locked) extension to these encrypted files. Further, it generates (README_FOR_UNLOCK.txt) file in every folder as the ransom note. To restore functionality, the hacker generally asks for a payment ranging from $140 to $145. Some hackers ask for Bitcoin payment too.
Easy-To-Follow Guidelines to Protect Your Magento Store From Ransomware
1. Update your Store and Server Regularly
The malware attack happens only when it detects vulnerabilities in the software that runs the server. The flaw might be in the framework, the eCommerce application or the software stack itself. Thus it is important that your eCommerce application and the extensions that you own remain updated always. By shifting to the managed hosting, this issue can be effectively solved. You can hire a Magento expert to take care of these essential services.
2. Keep Regular Backups
Maintain a daily schedule for data backup. Pick up an off-site location or select third-party service which can be accessed even if your computer system collapses. A wiser approach would be to distribute your backup files in multiple locations and on different media. Don’t forget to remove the Ransomware completely before you restore the backup data.
3. Strengthen Protection
Focus on a high level mitigation strategy to reduce the risk impact and limit its chances of occurrence. Some strategies that work for enterprises and government organizations are Application Whitelisting, Patching, and restricted admin privileges. These include measures like allowing only the authorized application to run on the system, updating the system with software patches, strictest control for accounts with administrative privileges and the like. An internet security expert can help devise the mitigation strategy the right way.
4. Educate Your Employees
Employees are backbone of any organization. So it’s very important that they know the severity of Ransomware attacks and refrain from net activities that stir up the hornet’s nest! To prepare your employees and end-users, organize in-house IT seminars or spread the message via interactive sessions. You can even hire a security consultant to deliver the training with real-life examples and supplementary videos.
5. Don’t Give In To Ransom Demands
In case you are not fully prepared and the system gets infected suddenly, then you might be tempted to pay the amount for immediate relief. This is not at all a wise move. When you pay the amount, you actually bolster their confidence. They use your money to develop advanced Ransomware to infect more people like you. By paying the money you expose yourself to greater threats in future also. You surely don’t want that, do you!
Rather than preparing yourself to pay the ransom, invest in a better system, educated workforce, and result-driven enterprise security solutions for a better future!
If you are still using the old version of your store, worried for malware attack and want to upgrade your Magento store or your store with another platform then you can talk to our expert now or send your queries here.