Timico , cloud service provider in partnership with Datto , a business continuity solutions provider, reveals research findings that the effects of Ransomware attacks on finance companies cause substantial financial cost and immeasurable data loss. However, there is an alarming lack of awareness when it comes to being prepared, with over half of UK banking and insurance firms having no official Ransomware policy, to guide employees on what to do in the event of an attack.  

Ransomware is malicious software designed to block access to a computer system until a sum of money is paid. It is the biggest global cyber threat to business with reported incidents increasing in frequency and complexity and the financial demands escalating. The National Cyber Security Centre weekly threat report predicts that new innovations in Ransomware are already happening, such as targeting internet-connected devices to create a “Ransomware of Things.”  

60 seconds or less to shutdown

The research report entitled ‘The Reality of Ransomware,’ surveyed 1,000 UK organizations including 250 in the banking and insurance sectors. All those polled have been a victim of Ransomware and many had been attacked within the last 12 months.

Nearly two thirds (62%) of finance firms said that the effects of an attack were almost instant with data systems going from fully functional to essentially useless within seconds and minutes. A quarter (25%) reported lockdown within a few minutes, with 17% saying it took just one minute and 20%, just a few seconds.

The drastic effect on business

The Timico and Datto research found that, for the majority (89%) of banks and insurance companies that have been victim to Ransomware, systems were down for a week or more, causing £1,000s in financial damage a day to most businesses. 

Nearly half (43%) had to endure their data down for more than a month, with 19% reporting their data as ‘unrecoverable.’ 

But retrieving data is becoming increasingly more difficult for organizations. The ransom fees, demanded by cybercriminals before they will unlock the victim’s computer system, are rapidly rising. More than a quarter (26%) of finance firms paid over £5,000 to retrieve their data. 

The true cost of Ransomware is a financial abyss

Knowing the extent of the cost of the attack on the business is often unknown. A third (33%) of banks and insurance firms could not even estimate the overall financial cost to the business of the Ransomware attack, deeming it ‘unquantifiable’. Over half (56%) of respondents in the finance sector estimated that the attack had cost the business between £1,000 to £2,000 per day in lost revenue, due to its data systems being down.

Lack of guidance leaving organizations vulnerable to loss 

Despite Ransomware being well reported as one of the biggest, evolving threats to companies world-wide, many staff within UK finance organizations would have no idea what to do in the event of an attack.  Timico and Datto found that over half (55%) have no official Ransomware policy in place to guide staff on what to do when an attack occurs, leaving them vulnerable to huge and unquantifiable financial and data loss.