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It would be difficult to overestimate the business risks of ransomware and malware attacks.

Malware volume skyrocketed in 2016, increasing by more than 800 percent from the previous year. With that number continuing to rise, it is easy to see the scope of the problem that all businesses face. No matter how small the business is, any type of company is a potential victim.

Ransomware can infiltrate your business through many entry points, including email via attachments, links and with social engineering and through your web browsers.

Follow these best practices to keep your business clear of ransomware and malware:

Secure your network with multi-layer approach. Your organization should protect all security gaps by combining email and web security solutions with an endpoint anti-virus (AV) protection layer. Web protection platforms complement email security and AV endpoints by blocking malware at the source, and by scanning networks in search of previously untraced malware.

A cloud-based security strategy will allow all your solutions to be updated thousands of times per day to ensure protection from the newest tricks and tactics. Ransomware is capable of propagating to external backup solutions directly connected to a PC. If ransomware manages to execute and start encrypting files, an online backup solution can roll back all the information before infection, enabling you to undo any damage.

The best way to deal with ransomware is eliminate the risk. Accomplish this with advanced spam filters that ban emails from regions where you aren’t conducting business. You may also want to adjust your security settings to block macro-embedded Word documents or Excel files – both are common entry points for ransomware.

Cyber extortionists and ransomware attempts are here to stay, and will continue to threaten businesses of all sizes. However, a little bit of education and the right solutions go a long way. Hackers are constantly adapting and improving their weapons of choice, so you must be diligent. Make sure your users are well educated, initiate a multi-layer security approach and have a thorough backup plan in place.

Looking for more ways to prevent and defeat ransomware in your business? Download our free “Business Guide to Ransomware: Understand, Analyze & Protect,”

The whitepaper includes greater detail on the points above, along with best practices for securing your network via: