US financial institutions attributed nearly $1.2 billion in costs associated with ransomware attacks in 2021, a nearly 200% increase over the previous year, according to data that banks have reported to the U.S. Treasury Department.

Those costs are likely just the tip of the iceberg. Ransomware is an under-reported epidemic, with high-profile attacks on critical infrastructure and national healthcare providers and as well as on local school districts and mom-and-pop shops. In any case, ransomware can be devastating.   

Victims know that paying the ransomware only emboldens the criminals, they often pay anyway because they feel like they have no other choice to stay in business. Even then, there is no guarantee they will actually get their data back. 

An International Effort Underway

The Biden administration is seeking international cooperation in an effort to crack down on ransomware operators. 

At a recent White House ransomware summit, global and private sector participants agreed to set up a voluntary International Counter Ransomware Task Force to serve as a base for coordinated disruption and operational threat sharing. The task force also seeks to create an investigator’s toolkit with lessons learned and strategies for responding to significant ransomware events. It is also exploring ways to stop the use of cryptocurrency for extortion. The initiative will launch in 2023. 

Help Your Customers Be More Resilient to Ransomware

While the federal government works to deter ransomware globally, you can also help your customers be more resilient to the threat. Make sure your customers are following best practices like using two-factor authentication, email security and endpoint security, and frequent data backups. 

One tactic you might not have considered is using object storage for immutable backups. Object storage only allows create, read and delete actions, so previous versions are retained and ransomware can’t make changes to the data. And that provides a clean recovery capability. One solution is Hitachi Content Platform, which includes object storage, file synchronization capabilities and data protection, to combat ransomware and protect data across an organization, from its data centers and offices to employees’ homes.  

Learn more about the International Counter Ransomware Initiative Summit.

Learn how Hitachi Vantara can help your customers overcome ransomware risks.