South: Staff pose greatest risk in global cyber attack

As yet another high-profile cyber-attack takes hold worldwide, a Hampshire IT firm is warning that it’s actually employees who pose the greatest cyber threat to businesses.

Yesterday a new virus hit computers across the globe, freezing users’ machines and demanding a ransom to unlock it.

Nigel Taylor, managing director of Taylor Made Computer Solutions, says while it’s important to have systems such as anti-virus software in place, eliminating human error is even more important. "From what we’ve seen in our work across the south it’s ultimately human error that makes businesses fall victim to cyber-crime. Employees are at the front of the battlefield so they can be a company’s biggest threat when it comes to attacks online. Ransomware attacks, like we’ve seen over the past 24 hours, work by tricking users into clicking a link which causes them to download a virus. The virus often locks their computer, restricting access to all files, and spreads to other users on the network.

“CEOs and IT managers are ultimately in the hands of their staff to halt these attacks at the front line. By ensuring employees, from the reception desk to the boardroom, know exactly what to look out for can potentially save millions. This shouldn’t be a one-off employee briefing either. These hackers are always finding new ways to trick people so keeping on top of the latest trends and implementing regular training is vital.”

Reports say security researchers have discovered a ‘vaccine’ for the attack. By creating a read-only file - named perfc - and placing it within a computer's "C:\Windows" folder, the attack will be stopped in its tracks. An explanation of how to do this has been posted by security news website Bleeping Computer and has been backed up by several other security experts. However, the method only protects the individual computer the perfc file is placed on. As yet, cyber experts have been not been able to fine a ‘kill switch’ that would disable the ransomware attack entirely.

Taylor Made Computer Solutions has been reassuring its clients across the south that they are safe from the latest Petya attack. The company approved and implemented a patch to protect its managed service customers three months ago. Its team of IT experts are continuing to monitor the situation to ensure all of its clients are protected.

Taylor Made’s tips for avoiding being hit by a ransomware virus

• Ensure all of your systems are up to date – updates are there to protect you from the latest innovations in hacking
• Hold regular training with all staff to teach them how to spot dodgy emails
• If you have the slightest doubt about the authenticity of an email don’t click the link
• ALWAYS hover over links to see where they lead to - if it’s a strange or unrelated website it’s likely to be a virus
• Be wary of clicking links in emails from mobile phones and tablets – these devices don’t give you the option to hover over and see where the link leads
• Poor grammar is often a tell-tale sign of a scam email
• Forget the myth that Apple devices are immune from viruses
• Make sure you have current, checked backups in place, as in most circumstances this is the only way to recover a safe position after an attack
• Never pay the ransom if you are hit – it only encourages hackers to target you, and others, again and there’s no guarantee you’ll get your files back

For more tips and advice register for our Ransomware webinar that’s taking place on the 12^th July 2017 at 11:00 till 12:00 - https://goo.gl/LQzXRM