Ransomware attacks pose a serious threat to U.S. national security. A successful attack has the potential to cripple essential government services, cause irreparable damage to government agencies, steal critical citizen data, and endanger lives. Further, the global average cost of a data breach for organizations in 2024 was approximately $4.88 million, marking a 10% increase from the previous year and the highest total ever recorded. And government agencies may incur even higher costs due to the sensitive nature of the data they manage.
A simple review of these types of stealthy breaches shows how they can turn destructive at a moment's notice. Indeed, despite the public sector's diligent efforts, ransomware attacks have recently targeted organizations such as the Los Angeles Superior Court, the Legislative Bill Drafting Commission, and UMC Health System. Since ransomware attacks are nearly unavoidable, your agency should prioritize preparation over prevention, focusing on building cyber resilience and recovery strategies.
The widespread and severe impact of ransomware attacks across the public sector leaves victims with an impossible choice: pay the ransom to regain access to the data needed to restore vital citizen services or refuse and take their chances with potentially higher recovery costs. Therefore, a minimal investment (or in many cases repurposing funds) and modernizing away from legacy backup solutions that aren't designed for the modern threat landscape can save your agency millions in ransom and recovery costs.
Cyber Resiliency + Immutable Backups = The Best Defense Against Cybercriminals
The recent surge in ransomware attacks is partly due to public agencies facing rapid data growth, limited visibility, outdated legacy systems, and constrained resources. Add to that the new reality that agencies can’t stop 100% of attacks, and the critical importance of data in the public sector becomes obvious.
One tactic for your agency to combat ransomware is through regular data backups. However, threat actors are now targeting backups by encrypting or deleting them. According to a Rubrik Zero Labs study, in 96% of ransomware attacks, attackers attempted to compromise backup systems—and they were at least partially successful in 74% of those attempts. This underscores the critical need for robust backup and recovery strategies, such as:
Immutable Backups: Ensure that cannot be altered or deleted, preventing attackers from tampering with backup data.
Hardened Operating Systems: Use operating systems that are configured to resist attacks. This tactic includes disabling unnecessary services and ensuring security features cannot be easily altered.
Data Exposure Prevention: Implement encryption, access controls, and monitoring to prevent data breaches and unauthorized access to sensitive information.
Additionally, assigning specialized teams to handle the complexities of ransomware attacks, ensuring prompt and effective response coordination, and allocating funds for cyber insurance can strengthen defenses against evolving threats.
Rapid Data Recovery with Rubrik
Historically, recovering from a ransomware attack has been complex and time-consuming for government agencies. Identifying the scope of the attack, locating the most recent clean datasets, and ensuring that data backups have not been deleted or encrypted are daunting tasks. To address these challenges, Rubrik provides powerful tools for rapid recovery from ransomware attacks, allowing your agency to recover its critical data in minutes or hours, rather than days, weeks, or months.
Because all your agency’s data is stored in an immutable format with Rubrik, cybercriminals are prevented from accessing and encrypting data backups, safeguarding the critical services that citizens rely on. If an attack hits your agency, Rubrik provides fast recovery to the most recent clean state and granular visibility into the scope of the attack. Moreover, by leveraging advanced machine learning techniques, Rubrik can alert your agency of unusual behavior immediately following a suspected attack.
A quick recovery and minimized downtime allow your agency to remain resilient in the face of emerging digital threats, providing uninterrupted services and maintaining public trust. Schedule a demo today to safeguard your agency and combat dynamic ransomware attacks through effective cyber resilience strategies.