With ransomware, pay up if you want to keep paying

[LASER_oneXM]

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And that’s the problem when it comes to ransomware. Not paying a ransom could easily be much more damaging than paying it.

Pay up or refuse?

So there you are, staring at a locked computer screen demanding a ransom. Do you pay? There are powerful reasons not to.

Paying a ransom fuels a criminal enterprise, one that is fairly sophisticated – some of them run help desks to teach victims how to buy bitcoins to pay ransoms. They clearly have the funds for research and development, so paying not only propels more attacks on other businesses, it encourages hackers to adapt to new security measures and to develop attacks on new entry points.

It could also lead to more attacks on your business. By paying, you put a target on your back, showing hackers you’re a fruitful mark. Like any smart businesspeople, hackers looking to earn a quick dollar will target those who have shown they are vulnerable and are willing to spend money to recover their systems.

The answer then, is simple: Pay if you want to keep these criminals in business. Pay if you want to provide funds to design new attacks. Pay if you want to keep paying.

Why paying ransomware should never be a question

The only way to slow the flood of ransomware is to stop paying. By removing the financial incentives for hackers, you’re removing the reason ransomware exists.

But that scenario presents us with a collective action program. If 99 percent of all businesses decide they won’t pay, those that remain could still be a fairly lucrative target.

 

[Winter Soldier]

I agree not to pay, but how many people use regularly making backups of their data??
If a ransomware encrypt until the last byte of your vital data and you do not have a backup, you're done!
But the real question is : if your data are so vital, because you don't run a backup of them?
How many questions....in the meantime, you have to pay ... poor you!