Ransomware Continues to Infect Computer Systems

Ransomware Continues to Infect Computer Systems

Cyber security is a hot topic that is here to stay. Being locked out of your computer system and files, and the potential financial implications of notifying individuals whose data may have been impacted, can devastate any organization’s budget.

Last year, PE Partners added a Cyber Extension to the Privacy & Network Liability Policy offered to members. The Cyber Extension offered coverage for ransomware, social engineering and data restoration expenses.

PE Partners is now seeing claims where ransomware infections are also extracting data from members’ networks, requiring members to notify affected parties of the loss of their personal information — a time-consuming process that can be very costly.

Data backups continue to be the most effective means for recovering your system after a ransomware attack, but every organization should actively guard against this type of attack.

Our Sensitive Information and Computer Security Loss Control Guideline is available on our online portal or by reaching out to your casualty loss control consultant. Please do not wait until your organization has been infected by ransomware or a virus to put reasonable safeguards in place.

In a recent ransomware event for a PE Partners member, it was learned that the member was utilizing an unsupported operating system. Because hacks are sometimes conducted through computer software and operating systems, it is important to know what software has been uploaded to each computer, and what operating system (and version) is being used.

Public organizations should ensure that only software applications or operating systems that are currently supported by and receiving vendor updates are added to the organization's authorized software inventory. Unsupported software should be tagged as unsupported in the inventory system, and a determination should be made regarding whether to remove this unsupported legacy software.

For additional guidance on this issue, please contact your casualty loss control consultant.