TheCorporateCounsel.net

August 26, 2021

Ransomware: Federal Agencies Offering “One-Stop Shop” For Incident Reporting & Info

To help stem the tide of ransomware incidents, agencies across the US government have launched StopRansomware.gov – a “one-stop shop” for individuals and businesses to find the latest alerts & resources about attacks and how to report them. Here’s an excerpt from the DOJ’s announcement:

Ransomware is a long-standing problem and a growing national security threat. Tackling this challenge requires collaboration across every level of government, the private sector and our communities. Roughly $350 million in ransom was paid to malicious cyber actors in 2020, a more than 300% increase from the previous year. Further, there have already been multiple notable ransomware attacks in 2021, and despite making up roughly 75% of all ransomware cases, attacks on small businesses often go unnoticed.

Like most cyber attacks, ransomware exploits the weakest link. Many small businesses have yet to adequately protect their networks, and StopRansomware.gov will help these organizations and many more to take simple steps to protect their networks and respond to ransomware incidents, while providing enterprise-level information technology (IT) teams the technical resources to reduce their ransomware risk.

DHS, DOJ, the White House and our federal partners encourage all individuals and organizations to take the first step in protecting their cybersecurity by visiting StopRansomware.gov.

Liz Dunshee