The risk to supply chain assets due to malware is huge and the build, test and production environments are always at risk of suffering a malware attack. What ensues is failure of existing detection methods failure and compromise of software development lifecycle. Environments are often exposed to all imaginable vectors of attack caused by insider contamination due to malicious third-party software components. The production environment is at a high risk too.

Normally it works like this. Someone gets infected by ransomware, and then they pay the ransom. The victim then licks their wounds and hopefully learns something from the experience. And that’s what happened to Tobias Frömel, a German developer and web designer who found himself paying a Bitcoin ransom of 670 Euros (US $735) after his QNAP NAS drive was hit by the Muhstik ransomware.

You don't need to be a cybersecurity expert to know that ransomware attacks have become one of today's greatest IT security threats. From WannaCry to the attack against the city of Atlanta, major ransomware exploits have become so commonplace in the last few years that they may seem impossible to avoid. Fortunately, preventing ransomware is far from impossible. Let's take a look at a few strategies you can put in place to mitigate your risk of becoming part of the next ransomware statistic.

Malware, or malicious software, is any program or file that harms a computer or its user. Common types of malware include computer viruses, ransomware, worms, trojan horses and spyware. These malicious programs can steal, encrypt or delete sensitive data, alter or hijack key computing functions and to monitor the victim's computer activity.

Danish hearing aid manufacturer Demant has revealed that a suspected ransomware attack on its systems in September could cost the company over $95 million. The company experienced a 'critical incident' on September 3, but refuses to elaborate on the nature of the attack. Some researchers have speculated there are many indicators that it could be a ransomware attack that hit the firm causing a critical crash in the IT Infrastructure.

The U.S. Senate passed a new law requiring the federal government to provide more support for organizations hit by ransomware. The DHS Cyber Hunt and Incident Response Teams Act will require the Department of Homeland Security to put together dedicated teams whose goal is to provide advice to organizations on how to protect their systems. This group will also be responsible for providing technical support and incident response assistance.

Ransomware is a type of malicious software, or malware, designed to deny access to a computer system or data until ransom is paid. Ransomware spreads through phishing emails, malvertising, visiting infected websites or by exploiting vulnerabilities. Ransomware attacks cause downtime, data leaks, intellectual property theft and data breaches. Ransom payment amounts range from a few hundred to hundreds of thousands of dollars. Payable in cryptocurrencies like Bitcoin.

An estimated 16,000 websites are believed to be running a vulnerable and no-longer-maintained WordPress plugin that can be exploited to display pop-up ads and redirect visitors to webpages containing porn, scams, and–worst of all–malware designed to infect users’ computers. Researchers at WordFence went public about how hackers are exploiting a zero-day vulnerability in a third-party WordPress plugin called Rich Reviews to inject malvertising code into vulnerable WordPress sites.

Staff members at the Campbell County Memorial Hosptial are scrambling to operate business as usual after the computer systems at the hospital were struck by ransomware last Friday. The hospital claims, " All CCH computer systems have been affected, which impacts the organization’s ability to provide patient care". The attack forced the healthcare provider to cancel some surgeries, and cancel all outpatient lab, respiratory therapy, radiology exams and procedures, and new inpatient admissions.

WannaCry is a ransomware cryptoworm cyber attack that targets computers running the Microsoft Windows operating system. It was initially released on 12 May 2017. The ransomware encrypted data and demanded ransom of $300 to $600, paid in the cryptocurrency Bitcoin. WannaCry is also known as WannaCrypt, WCry, Wana Decrypt0r 2.0, WanaCrypt0r 2.0 and Wanna Decryptor.