As the year 2022 approaches, the rising menace of ransomware and extortion demands show no signs of abating. According to Infosecurity Magazine, average ransomware demands increased by 518 percent in the first half of 2021 compared to the same period in 2020, while payments increased by 82 percent. Ransomware assaults crippled businesses for six days on average, costing millions of dollars.

SMBs are a popular target for cyber criminals because they frequently lack the resources to strengthen their defenses against malware like ransomware. MSPs will be even more important in protecting small and medium-sized enterprises (SMBs) against ransomware in 2022.

This article will explain how MSPs may adopt a layered approach to cybersecurity to defend themselves and their clients against ransomware.

Multi-prong assaults require a multi-layered strategy

Ransomware is frequently detected by CYB3R-X security analysts as part of a multi-pronged attack. These attacks, which are carried out by cyber criminals using leaked or stolen login credentials, appear to be legitimate users on the network. Ransomware generally employs a “low and sluggish” strategy to avoid detection by siloed tools with limited visibility.

Criminal gangs such as REvil, Conti, and Darkside are just a few instances of those who have successfully used a ransomware method known as double extortion. In 2022, organizations will continue to identify ransomware exploitation by well-funded gangs that modify and morph their proven strategies. Ransomware-as-a-service (RaaS) allows less-skilled criminals to scale up and cause havoc on unsuspecting victims. To stop as many risks as possible and quickly discover and fix the rest, proactive prevention is required up front.

What would your layered approach look like?

Imagine attempting to keep up with the constant barrage of threats, not to mention what happens if they do manage to get in – which they will. A layered approach to cybersecurity ensures redundancy in the event of a security control failure or the discovery of a future vulnerability. To cover all bases, defense-in-depth security safeguards against a wide range of threats. The right mix of people, process, and technology can protect both your consumers and your business. To predict, prevent, detect, and respond (PPDR) to ransomware, use a four-step method.

    1. Predict future attacks before they happen: You can’t protect what you cannot see. To be more proactive and stop pre-attacks earlier, add holistic visibility to each customer’s infrastructure, assets, and attack surface. Threat intelligence is one way to learn more about cybersecurity gangs and their real-world attacker tactics, techniques, and procedures (TTPs). Vulnerability management that encompasses regular scanning pinpoints security gaps before cyber criminals exploit them – providing much-needed time to resolve without attackers lurking.

 

    1. Prevent unknown threats: Your legacy anti-virus (AV) and signature-based tools can prevent known attacks but are largely ineffective against unknown and Zero-day attacks. While ransomware prevention may seem like wishful thinking, cybersecurity preparedness and a multi-layered approach overcome merely reacting to breaches instead of predicting and preventing threats. Endpoint protection and mobile security are two ways to stop attacks in real-time before they execute and cause harm. A prevention-first approach dramatically reduces false positives and focuses more of your time on higher-value areas like patching, threat hunting, and hardening customer defenses.

 

    1. Detect threats before harm is done: Identify threats in your customer’s infrastructure immediately before ransomware damage occurs. Speed up detection with single-pane-of-glass visibility backed by cybersecurity experts who augment your team. Multiple layers of defense provide extended detection and response (XDR) capability encompassing SIEM, endpoint detection and response, and intrusion detection.

 

  1. Respond rapidly to remediate fully: Detection of a ransomware attack takes 175 days on average.  A 24/7 SOC (security operations center) uses machine learning and automated playbooks to quickly identify the root cause of security incidents.  An integrated platform with comprehensive visibility provides additional threat context to get your customers back to business faster with full recovery.

Defense-in-depth security helps you prepare for and prioritize the most dangerous threats, both known and unknown.

MSP benefits of defense-in-depth

As you prepare for the new year, now’s the time to evaluate your product and service portfolio in response to rising ransomware. MSP advantages include:

  • Speeding time-to-market with a more holistic cybersecurity solution
  • Moving beyond yesterday’s tools to managed services that drive recurring revenue
  • Facilitating new opportunities for up-sell and deeper customer engagement

Expertise plus technology safeguards your entire attack surface across servers, network devices, cloud assets, and endpoints.