Garmin’s Ransomware Attack: What it Means for Your Business

Imagine it. You’re driving to the beach with your family, navigating unfamiliar roads when suddenly your GPS flickers off. Maybe you have a Magellan-esque sense of directions, but if you’re anything like the rest of us, you rely on that GPS to get you where you need to go.

This is what happened to Garmin customers when the company was besieged by a ransomware attack in early August. When hackers took Garmin’s data hostage, the company’s service was disrupted for millions of users around the world. Regaining control cost Garmin millions and left the platform with persisting issues even after the ransom was paid.

This level of disruption is among the worst case scenarios for an organization hit by a ransomware attack. Worst of all, it may be a herald of things to come. The attack on Garmin was not only a big payday for cybercriminals but also proof positive that big corporations are not immune to large-scale cyber attacks; in fact, they make ideal targets for cybercriminals looking for high payouts.

Hospitals and municipalities have long been favored targets of ransomers. Their relatively low security and data stores of sensitive user information have made them easy pickings. But criminals are realizing that multinational enterprises don’t post as big a threat as they once did, and their deep pockets make them all the more enticing.

Now, if this story has got you despairing at the state of cyber security, don’t fret. While cloud services are not completely immune from ransomware, they’re an important part of a strong data security strategy. The industry-favored 3-2-1 backup strategy is a great first line of defense, but it won’t make you impenetrable. To do that, there is only one surefire tactic: immutability.

Immutable data can’t be deleted or altered in any way. A cybercriminal can not encrypt immutable files or threaten their owner with deletion, disarming all threats to data ransoming.

At Wasabi, we know how tangible the threat of ransomware can be. It was imperative to give our users the utmost in data protection and cybersecurity while making it simple to use. Our Compliance settings within buckets allows for data to be made immutable for a set period of time with an option to delete after this retention period. These features in conjunction with Wasabi’s low price and high speed, make our hot cloud storage an ideal platform for businesses of all sizes.

The Garmin attack has emboldened ransomware hackers to go for bigger targets. Garmin’s multi-million dollar payout is evidence that ransomware is profitable, and was a calling card for other hackers to follow suit. Large enterprises looking for a robust cybersercurity strategy must accept immutable storage as the only way to curb the threat of ransomware. Good backup practices go a long way but an uneditable, undeletable, encrypted bucket will repel most any would-be ransomware attacker.