Monday Morning Impact – April 19

Study: More than Half of Ransomware Victims pay, but Many Remain Empty-Handed

More than half (56%) of ransomware victims paid the ransom to restore access to their data last year, according to a global survey of 15,000 consumers conducted by global security company, Kaspersky. Yet for 17% of the people who paid, that did not guarantee the return of their stolen data.

Kaspersky’s report, “Consumer appetite versus action: The state of data privacy amid growing digital dependency,” highlights consumer experience with this growing cyber threat.

The percentage of victims who paid the ransom to restore access to their data last year was highest among those aged 35-44; with two-thirds (65%) having paid. That compares to just over half (52%) of those aged 16-24 and only 11% of those over the age of 55.

Whether they paid or not, only 29% of all victims were able to restore all their encrypted or blocked files following an attack. Half (50%) lost at least some files, 32% lost a significant amount, and 18% lost a small number of files. Meanwhile, 13% who did experience such an incident lost almost all their data.

“This data shows we have seen a significant proportion of consumers paying a ransom for their data over the past 12 months,” said Marina Titova, Head of Consumer Product Marketing at Kaspersky. “But handing over money doesn’t guarantee the return of data, and only encourages cybercriminals to continue the practice. Therefore, we always recommend that those affected by ransomware do not pay as that money supports this scheme to thrive. Instead consumers should make sure to invest in initial protection and security for their devices and regularly back up all data. This will make the attack itself less appealing or lucrative to cybercriminals, reducing the use of the practice, and presenting a safer future for web users.”

Kaspersky recommends against paying if a device has been locked. Paying ransoms only encourages cybercriminals to continue their practice. Instead, contact your local law enforcement agency and report the attack. Try to find out the name of the ransomware Trojan. This information can help cybersecurity experts decrypt the threat and retain access to your files, given that experts may have run into exploits using the same malware. Backing up your devices is also an important practice.

Channel Impact^®
Channel partners should leverage this data as a means of helping customers to minimize their risk.

Datto Upgrades MSP Platform

Datto, a Norwalk, Connecticut-based provider of cloud-based software and technology solutions for MSPs, has announced the North American availability of Datto Commerce. Formerly known as “Gluh,” Datto Commerce is a real-time sales platform intended to simplify day-to-day product procurement and increase MSP profitability.

By leveraging the platform, MSPs can produce professional-looking quotes in as little as 30 seconds. The platform procures products based on availability, price, and supplier preferences at the time of quote approval through the use of vendor data feeds delivered through an MSP-branded online storefront.

“MSPs have the opportunity to provide their SMB clients with everything IT related to encourage standardization,” said Radhesh Menon, Chief Product Officer at Datto. “We’re excited to provide this superior platform that integrates with PSAs to enable MSPs to sell more products in less time and with fewer resources, while increasing profitability with every transaction.”

Datto Commerce integrates with a variety of MSP-business management tools including Autotask PSA, ConnectWise Manage, Xero, Quickbooks, and Stripe. The cloud-based platform also supports local tax management requirements and regional distributors in North America, Australia and New Zealand, with the goal of expanding its availability to other global regions.

Channel Impact^®
The platform is intended to drive profitability operational efficiency, productivity, and client engagement with quoting, procurement and e-commerce tools.

Perimeter 81 Launches Firewall as a Service Offering for its SASE Platform

Perimeter 81, an Israeli-based Secure Access Service Edge (SASE) and Network as a Service provider, has launched a Firewall as a Service (FWaaS) offering intended to build upon the company’s SASE offering, which includes Zero Trust Network Access (ZTNA), Zero Trust Application Access (ZTAA), and DNS Filtering capabilities. Network Traffic Control enables IT teams to create policies that apply to their Perimeter 81 cloud edge network and enforce network traffic control both inside and outside of their network.

“Companies are consuming security in a totally different way than they were a few years ago,” said Amit Bareket, co-founder and CEO of Perimeter 81. “SASE is paving a way forward, providing critical scalability and meeting workforces where they are — in the office or remote. By adding these capabilities, we’re guiding organizations into a new era of security, protecting them as their perimeters rapidly expand.”

Customers can segment Layer 3 and 4 access based on user or group identity, using network policy rules that provide granular control of how data flows at every layer. Users can create traffic filtering rules for network objects that include addresses, users, groups and services.

“We’re living in the era of hybrid work,” added Bareket. “It is even more crucial to ensure that employees are working securely. With our new offering, we can help our customers meet their security needs with a cloud-based firewall that secures their network and resources from incoming attacks.”

Channel Impact^®
In an era when companies moving their operations to the cloud and dramatically increasing their number of remote workers, cloud-based firewalls are designed to scale with the organization and provide IT with a holistic view of network access.