You sit down at your computer and suddenly get a pop-up message informing you that if you do not pay $500 into a Bitcoin account in a week, you will lose all your data for good.

So you try to open your business reports and none of them are opening!

This virus has also encrypted the mapped company drive on your server. Now your business comes to a grinding halt.

Now what? You might even have to close your business if your accounting and HR system is also encrypted.

Your computer has been infected with ransomware – it will take months for you to recover from this disaster.

Ransomware is a type of malware that prevents or limits users from accessing their system, either by locking the system’s screen or by locking the files unless a ransom is paid.

More modern ransomware, or crypto-ransomware, will encrypt certain file types on infected systems and force users to pay the ransom through certain online payment methods.

This scenario plays out in hundreds of businesses daily. Even though there is no certain way of preventing this from happening there are ways to minimize the risk of it occurring and the damage when it does occur.

We spoke to industry expert Nick van der Walt, managing director of HDI Group IT with 17 years’ experience in the IT industry. He told The Courier there had been a definite increase in the amount of ransomware attacks in South Africa.

“There has been a major spike in these attacks in the past year,” said Van der Walt.

He added that the more people who pay these ransoms, the larger the market for this kind of malware becomes.

“The creators of ransomware programs target computers indiscriminately, meaning anyone can be a victim.

“The worst part is that even if you pay them, there is no guarantee they will actually unlock your files – they could simply take the money and leave you in the lurch.”

Nick gives us the lowdown on how NOT to become a victim:

1. Make sure you have a password encrypted, offsite full system backup of all your servers. This process must be monitored and manually checked on at least a weekly basis as well as reported on.

2. Ensure your computers all have an updated antivirus program. Even one unprotected computer can be too much. Your IT company must manage this and be able to report on this weekly.

3. Make sure that all computers have the latest Microsoft security patches installed. Your IT company must manage this and be able to report on this on at least a monthly basis.

For a free assessment done on your IT by HDI Group IT, email them at assessment@hdigroup-it.co.za and they will get back to you. HDI Group IT are specialists in all your office IT needs and can help you secure and improve your system – making sure that you are both safe from cyber-attacks and at the cutting edge of IT developments.