What’s the future of ransomware; and how to help individuals, small businesses and companies protect themselves from such threats. Those were questions for a panel brought together by the IT security product firm Kaspersky Lab UK, that included McAfee’s Chief Scientist Raj Samani; and Director of Communications at Get Safe Online, Sarah Martinez. The panel was hosted by Eugene Kaspersky and was moderated by David Emm; Principal Security Researcher at Kaspersky Lab.
Kaspersky Lab Founder and CEO, Eugene Kaspersky, stressed the importance of laying a cyber security foundation that can shape a safe, secure future. He said: “Every action we take is in the interest of safeguarding our future. Cyber criminals are looking at the next generation of people as targets, which means we must be prepared for tomorrow’s threats. The next generation of ransomware will be optimised to deliver targeted attacks on infrastructure and will have a visible impact on physical infrastructure. By continuing to build greater cyber resilience today we can cut off the business of cyber crime, reduce threats and protect the next generation of people.”
The panel discussed the need to change the way the cyber security industry talks about and characterises ransomware. Panellists noted that the issue of ransomware has been characterised as extremely negative, and while there are challenges ahead, the industry has a responsibility to use language and imagery that empower people to know more about ransomware and have the confidence protect against it.
Kaspersky Lab UK’s General Manager, Adam Maskatiya, added: “We want everyone – from consumers to small business owners – to know that if we take the right preventive and reactive measures we can deter cyber threats. Our research shows the small businesses would benefit most from additional support, which is why Kaspersky Lab, along with our partners, are committed to providing resources to help people, and specifically small businesses, take a stand. As long as we have a unified front and participation from everyone, we will continue to make progress.”
In recent survey by the IT product firm, it was found that only 20pc of small businesses see cyber security as a top three priority when setting up their business and 10% have no cyber security in place whatsoever. Kaspersky Lab UK announced a new manifesto; and released new, empowering imagery for the industry to use as replacement for the negative imagery that depicts ransomware.
