Ransomware incidents have exploded in recent years, and it’s no surprise why. Digital transformation initiatives — from expanded cloud deployments and utilization to increased remote access — have massively increased the attack surface. Today, ransomware and cryptominers are the top malware types dropped into cloud environments.
Ransomware operators will typically scan for unsecured, open ports to start their attack. Internet-exposed Remote Desktop Protocol (RDP) endpoints continue to be cited in threat reports as the #1 entry point for ransomware, giving attackers their initial foothold in roughly 50% - 80% of successful ransomware attacks. In fact, 76% of cloud accounts for sale on the dark web to would-be attackers are specifically for RDP access.
Meanwhile, other remote access technologies like VPNs are being stretched for use cases far beyond what is secure, and are often poorly implemented. This all makes it easy for attackers to find gaps, gain broad access, and deliver malicious payloads, including ransomware. Social engineering attacks, such as phishing emails with infected attachments or malicious links, also continue to be common methods of landing and expanding a ransomware attack.
No matter how it is delivered, almost all ransomware requires privileges just to execute (install files or drivers, access registry keys, etc.) and encrypt data as well as to move laterally and spread. Ransomware attacks are increasingly incorporating fileless malware techniques to stay hidden while they advance through an organization’s systems and network.
Ready-to-go ransomware as a service kits are widely available on the dark web. This makes it easier than ever for an unsophisticated threat actor to launch a highly sophisticated, multi-step attack.
BeyondTrust Privileged Access Management breaks the ransomware attack chain at multiple points by exerting control over privileges, applications, and remote access pathways, and enforcing zero trust security principles.
BeyondTrust PAM solutions defend against the most common ransomware and malware attack vectors, including unsecure remote access pathways and privileged access. Our products also protect against sophisticated edge cases that leverage social engineering, macros, and other vulnerabilities.
Watch BeyondTrust solutions dismantle a DarkSide ransomware attack in real-time.
Ransomware is not magic—it can only run with the privileges of the user or the application that launches it. Therein lies its weakness, and our chance to leverage tools to contain it before it starts.
G. Mark Hardy, CISSP, CISA President, National Security Corporation
Traditional remote access methods such as RDP, VPNs, and legacy remote desktop tools lack the access management controls critical to ensuring least privilege. Moreover, RDP and VPN are commonly exploited due to vulnerabilities or misconfigurations. Extending remote access to your vendors makes matters even worse.
Privileged Remote Access locks down remote access, applying least privilege and auditing controls to all remote access from employees, vendors, and service desks.
With BeyondTrust’s Privileged Remote Access solution, we can make sure that access to any part of our infrastructure is impossible unless we say so... We can enforce a policy of least privilege by giving just the right level of access needed for their role; plus, the ability to schedule when vendors have access to which systems and for how long.
Curtis Jack, Manager of Technical Engineering, Oxford Properties Group
Endpoint Privilege Management manages and secure privileges across all types of endpoints — desktops, servers,
IoT, OT, and beyond.
While ransomware is commonly delivered as independent malware, some strains leverage legitimate applications and macros, such as Microsoft Office, Adobe, and PowerShell. Our solution also stops ransomware and fileless (living of the land) attacks at the source by protecting rogue execution of these applications.
"BeyondTrust provides a powerful platform that allows us to streamline and standardize application control and privileged management across our entire organization. We have successfully deployed a comprehensive and comprehensible solution that protects Ramboll’s IT assets and empowers users to make informed decisions. Our people are smarter, better protected, and that’s great news for business.”
—Dan Bartlett, Senior Consultant, Ramboll
Compromised credentials play a role in almost every IT security incident—ransomware is no exception. That’s why it’s critical to secure privileged credentials with an enterprise privileged password management solution.
Password Safe manages privileged accounts, credentials, secrets, and sessions for people and machines, ensuring complete control and security — all while enabling zero trust.
"We also saved time and money by preventing external vendors from logging in whenever they wanted to perform their updates. That was a big headache for my IT team, who often had to go in after the fact and fix whatever the updates broke. Password Safe allows us to record sessions rather than escort vendors while in the system. This feature has saved countless hours for the entire team."
—Mike Weiss, Information Technology Director, City of Midlothian