Backups of your critical software and data are one of the strongest weapons against ransomware in your IT arsenal. Even if ransomware makes it into your business’s network, you can simply purge the locked data and restore a fresh copy, sacrificing very little time.
Unfortunately, ransomware grows more sophisticated by the day, and cybercriminals have found ways to infect data backups and primary networks to negate this countermeasure. But all is not lost, as there are many ways that you can ransomware-proof your data backup strategy to prevent losing productivity, money, and your reputation to cybercriminals.
Can ransomware infect data backups?
Cybercriminals know that if you can recover from a ransomware attack quickly with data backups, you won’t have to pay the ransom. That’s why they have developed ransomware that can find and infect the data backup tools connected to your network before launching the primary attack on your systems
That’s why simply having a backup isn’t enough. You need a ransomware-resilient backup strategy that’s built to protect, recover, and restore without paying the ransom.
Tips and strategies to protect your data backups from ransomware
You might already have cloud backups, and that’s a good first step, but modern ransomware threats demand stronger responses to prevent a potentially business-ending event.
Not all of these strategies may be appropriate for your business’s needs or budget. But if, like most businesses, your company can’t survive without its data, you should consider implementing at least some of the following:
Follow the 3-2-1 rule for data backups
You may have heard this one before, as it’s been around for a while. But the reason this rule of thumb is still followed today is simple: it works.
The 3-2-1 rule for data backups is to:
- Keep 3 copies of your data.
- Store those copies on 2 different types of media.
- Keep 1 copy off site/offline.
Sticking to this strategy ensures that even if one of your data backups is compromised, you’ll have an alternate ready to go. Infecting one system with ransomware can be simple, but infecting a network and its data backups is difficult, and infecting a system with multiple backups is nearly impossible, even for the most sophisticated attacks.
Utilize offline backups
Storing massive amounts of data offline on miles of tape sounds like an obsolete blast from the past, but there’s a reason this practice is still thriving. It may be clunky and inefficient, but it’s cheap and, better yet, resistant to ransomware attacks because it doesn’t require an internet connection to create or access.
Throw in strict access controls to these offline backups, and you’ve got a powerful safeguard — your ace in the hole — when cybercriminals come to lock down your data.
Develop and maintain a master image
Also known as a “golden image,” this is a copy of your network’s software infrastructure and its configurations. Ransomware doesn’t just target your databases, but your apps and network infrastructure as well, preventing you from operating even if you have copies of your databases
Think of a master image as a template for your network: it consists of integrated software apps networked together with custom configurations for your organization. If your network is compromised by ransomware, you can restore it with the golden image and pick up where you left off, instead of spending days or weeks getting back to normal. Just make sure to update the image regularly.
Work with a data backup specialist for a customized strategy
Cybercriminals put all their time and energy into attacking businesses like yours, but you’ve got a business to run and may not be able to keep up with the latest technologies and best practices. The good news is you can level the playing field by partnering with outsourceIT, your trusted IT services provider. We put all our time and energy into protecting businesses like yours, so you’re always one step ahead of ransomware and other cyberthreats.
Contact us for a free consultation, and our disaster recovery and cybersecurity consultants will work with you to devise a personalized data backup strategy that will keep you protected from the latest ransomware threats.
