Partners: Are You Helping Customers Plan for Ransomware Attacks?

Ransomware attacks are a growing threat to businesses. According to the State of Ransomware 2022, a study involving 5,600 IT professionals at mid-sized organizations across 31 countries, the number of attacks skyrocketed in 2021. In 2020, 37 percent of the surveyed organizations were hit, but in 2021, 66 percent experienced a ransomware attack!

While organizations need to be proactive when it comes to protecting their data and preventing cyberattacks, value-added resellers (VARs) and managed service providers (MSPs) bear some responsibility. Here’s why – a trusted IT service provider is a company’s first line of defense against cyberattacks.

Businesses expect MSPs and resellers to help them make the most out of their technology, and that includes keeping their data and systems secure from ransomware attacks.

Let’s look at why ransomware attacks are a major threat today and how VARs and MSPs can help their clients keep their data safe.

What Is Ransomware?

Ransomware is a type of malicious software – also known as malware – that can block access to a company’s computer system until a ransom is paid. Generally, access is blocked through encryption – the malware encrypts the victim’s files and data. Then, the only way to regain access to the files is through a decryption key, which is what the attacker will share when the ransom is paid. 

How Do Ransomware Attacks Occur?

The most common vector for ransomware is email phishing. An attacker sends an email with a malware-laced attachment, but the email is disguised as a legitimate, trustworthy message. Once the receiver downloads the file with the malware, it can take over the computer system.

How Do Ransomware Attacks Impact Businesses?

The problem with this type of cyberattack is a business might not be able to operate without its data.

When a ransomware attack happens, companies turn to their IT service provider for help. The faster the company identifies the problem and reaches out for IT assistance, the easier it is to resolve the issue.

Unfortunately, ransomware can impact a business’s operations for days. In a survey of VARs and MSPs, Intermedia found that 72 percent of ransomware victims couldn’t access their data for at least two days. Thirty-two percent were down for five days or more.

This downtime is the reason ransomware costs are so high. When you combine the demanded ransom payment and downtime, network costs, and people hours, businesses lose about $2 million on average.

What Intermedia Partners Are Doing to Help Customers Recover Faster

There’s no question that ransomware attacks are a major cyber threat. And to avoid an attack, businesses need to be proactive.

While following standard ransomware protection tips – such as hardening endpoints, implementing enhanced email security, and practicing good IT hygiene – is essential, the right cloud backup tool will allow businesses to avoid downtime during a ransomware attack.

Intermedia partners can make sure their customers avoid downtime with SecuriSync, a comprehensive cloud backup solution that offers real-time backup, file sync and share (FSS), and antivirus protection.

With SecuriSync, users can keep operating during an attack. Productivity doesn’t drop, uninfected data is still accessible, and business can continue as usual while the IT team resolves the problem.

Why SecuriSync Is a Critical Tool for Mitigating Ransomware Risk

Without the right cloud backup solution, a ransomware attack can stop a business in its tracks. If users can’t access systems, they can’t be productive. Depending on which files are encrypted, there might be no way to access customer information, receive payments, or communicate with co-workers.

As an Intermedia partner, you can roll back any file archive for your customers if they are using SecuriSync. By rolling back to files before the malware infection occurred, users can immediately access uninfected files from alternative devices.

Here’s how ransomware recovery works with SecuriSync:

• Your IT team will quickly isolate the infected computer (or computers) to prevent the malware from spreading.
• Next, roll back the user’s file archive using an uninfected device – the roll-back can start at the moment before the infection occurred.
• While you wipe and restore the original device, your users can keep working using any alternative device. With cloud-based communications and other cloud apps, they can simply log in from any uninfected computer.

With the Right Cloud Technology, Everyone Wins – IT Resellers and Businesses

By offering tools that help your clients solve their most pressing issues – whether it’s the threat of a ransomware attack or the need to switch to a hybrid work model – everyone wins. IT resellers earn the trust of their clients by providing effective products, and businesses benefit from solutions that help them solve problems and stay competitive.

If your company wants to become the go-to provider for your clients, Intermedia can help. Through our partner program, Intermedia Partner Accelerate, you get everything you need to grow your cloud business, increase profits, and own the customer relationship.

We’ve created a full suite of cloud solutions that businesses need to thrive in the digital age, including cloud-based communications, productivity and email solutions, and tools for backup and file management. You can offer SecuriSync to your clients as a stand-alone tool or include it in a service bundle with any of these other solutions.

To help our partners thrive, we also offer comprehensive training, marketing and sales support, and simple onboarding steps. We also let you choose what type of relationship you want with every client – whether you want to be a private label reseller, a co-branded reseller, or an advisor.

Learn more about Intermedia’s partner program today and find out how you can help your clients plan for ransomware attacks, boost work flexibility, and more.