Top tips is a weekly column where we highlight what’s trending in the tech world today and list out ways to explore these trends. This week we’re looking at five ways you can protect your IT infrastructure against ransomware attacks.
Every year, the month of October is observed as Cybersecurity Awareness Month. This year, we wanted to dedicate a special entry in our top tips column to one of the fastest-growing digital economies in the world: the Middle East.
This region has seen incredible growth all across the board over the last few decades. As countries like the United Arab Emirates, Saudi Arabia, and Qatar spearhead the move away from the Middle East’s oil reliance, diversifying their economies and investing heavily in smart cities of the future, IT has begun to pervade every aspect of the economy of this region and is emerging as the backbone or base upon which future plans and developments are being made.
Of course, such accelerated digitization can also open a can of worms where cybersecurity is concerned. It brings incredible opportunities for growth but can also unfortunately provide new pathways for threat actors to cause large amounts of damage. This rapid digitization being experienced by the Middle East region has brought with it several security challenges that need to be effectively combated and navigated, especially when you weigh what’s at stake.
But right now, there’s one particular cybersecurity threat that is proving to be especially problematic considering the transitional state of Middle Eastern digital infrastructure: ransomware.
Holding your infrastructure hostage
While great strides are being made to diversify the Middle Eastern economy, we must also not forget that this region is still an oil and gas powerhouse that the whole world relies on, and IT is playing an important role in the digital transformation of this industry, as well. This digital transformation involves organizations setting up improved critical infrastructure to manage resources efficiently and streamline operations. Unfortunately, as disruption is the main goal of any ransomware attack, this digitization, in a way, plays into the hands of ransomware groups who now have more opportunities to exploit vulnerabilities within these critical infrastructure systems, potentially leading to significant disruptions and financial losses.
And it’s not just oil and gas companies that are in danger. As this region’s economy continues to diversify and become more service-based, more and more enterprises are going digital, creating more opportunities and more attractive targets for ransomware attacks. This current state of the economy paired with the vision for the future truly underscore the importance of developing increasingly effective cybersecurity strategies alongside IT to combat the ever-present threat of a ransomware attack. Where ransomware is concerned, preparedness is key.
Here are three ways you can defend your IT infrastructure against ransomware attacks
1. Perform regular vulnerability assessments and penetration testing
Regular vulnerability assessments are one of the best ways to protect your IT infrastructure from cyberattacks of any kind, not just ransomware. The key is to detect the vulnerability before the threat actor does. Of course, it’s near impossible to stay on top of every single weak point in your environment, but performing frequent penetration testing where your organization itself actively looks for and attempts to exploit threats in your own infrastructure can give you a clear view of all its strengths and weaknesses, which can help you strengthen your cyber resilience.
2. Implement segmented networks
Network segmentation involves splitting your network into several segments known as subnets. These subnets can function almost like autonomous units within the network itself, each with its own functions and control policies as defined under the organization’s segmentation policy.
Network segmentation can provide greater control over the flow of traffic through the network. It can also enable organizations to implement the principle of least privilege, ensuring strict access controls. Moreover, segmented networks enable organizations to greatly minimize the attack surface by isolating infected networks. This can greatly inhibit the lateral movement of any ransomware and make it that much harder to breach the entire network.
3. Regularly back up all your data and have a robust recovery plan in place
Constant and regular backups of your data can ensure that, even in the event of a ransomware attack, you can easily bounce back to normal operations. The main aim of a ransomware attack is to disable or incapacitate your IT infrastructure. Companies are usually willing to pay the ransom simply because the downtime caused by such an attack may result in costs far exceeding the demands of the attacker.
Regular backups can enable your organization to essentially start from scratch, where you give up the data that has been encrypted and go back to a previous, uninfected state. And if you’ve been backing up your data often, this can result in minimal losses. Data backups are accepted as the most effective way to deal with a ransomware attack. Make sure you also always remember the 3-2-1 backup rule, where three copies of data are made and stored in two separate storage types, with one additional copy stored off-site.
It’s also important to keep a clearly defined set of guidelines detailing how you will respond to a ransomware attack. Keep testing your response procedures to ensure that you can get your systems back up and running in as little time as possible.
Takeaway
The cybersecurity threats faced by the Middle East are not just limited to ransomware alone. As digital transformation efforts continue to ramp up in the region, organizations are exposed to more risk than ever before.
According to this report by IBM, the average cost of a data breach in 2023 is USD 4.45 million. The Middle East, rather alarmingly, has seen the second-highest average cost of a data breach worldwide at USD 8.07 million, only behind the United States. These figures show the importance of investing in effective cybersecurity and cyber-resiliency measures as more and more critical infrastructure continues to become digitized. Protecting against ransomware is just one aspect of a wider cybersecurity effort, and organizations in the Middle East must rise up to the challenge.
Very good note