Southfield 24-7 Immediate Ransomware
Computer Virus Damage Assessment and Remediation Help

Crypto-Ransomware : Your Feared IT Catastrophe
Ransomware has become a too-frequent cyberplague that presents an extinction-level danger for organizations unprepared for an assault. Multiple generations of crypto-ransomware like the CrySIS, WannaCry, Locky, NotPetya and MongoLock cryptoworms have been replicating for a long time and continue to inflict damage. Modern variants of ransomware such as Ryuk, Maze, Sodinokibi, DopplePaymer, LockBit or Egregor, plus additional unnamed newcomers, not only encrypt on-line files but also infect all available system protection. Files synched to the cloud can also be held hostage. In a poorly designed environment, this can make automatic restore operations hopeless and effectively sets the network back to zero.

Retrieving programs and data following a crypto-ransomware intrusion becomes a race against the clock as the victim fights to contain, clear the crypto-ransomware, and restore business-critical activity. Because ransomware requires time to move laterally, penetrations are frequently launched at night, when successful attacks tend to take longer to identify. This compounds the difficulty of promptly mobilizing and coordinating a knowledgeable mitigation team.

Progent makes available an assortment of help services for securing enterprises from ransomware events. These include team member education to become familiar with and not fall victim to phishing scams, ProSight Active Security Monitoring for remote monitoring and management, along with installation of the latest generation security solutions with machine learning technology from SentinelOne to discover and suppress new threats rapidly. Progent also provides the services of seasoned crypto-ransomware recovery engineers with the talent and commitment to rebuild a compromised system as rapidly as possible.

Progent's Ransomware Recovery Help
Subsequent to a crypto-ransomware event, paying the ransom in cryptocurrency does not ensure that merciless criminals will respond with the keys to decipher any of your data. Kaspersky determined that 17% of ransomware victims never recovered their data after having paid the ransom, resulting in more losses. The gamble is also costly. Ryuk ransoms are typically several hundred thousand dollars. For larger enterprises, the ransom can be in the millions. The other path is to setup from scratch the key components of your Information Technology environment. Without the availability of full system backups, this requires a wide range of skill sets, professional project management, and the ability to work non-stop until the recovery project is finished.

For two decades, Progent has provided certified expert IT services for companies across the US and has earned Microsoft's Partnership certification in the Datacenter and Cloud Productivity competencies. Progent's team of subject matter experts (SMEs) includes professionals who have earned top certifications in foundation technologies including Microsoft, Cisco, VMware, and popular distributions of Linux. Progent's cyber security consultants have garnered internationally-renowned certifications including CISM, CISSP, CRISC, GIAC, and CMMC 2.0. (See Progent's certifications). Progent in addition has expertise with financial management and ERP applications. This breadth of experience gives Progent the capability to quickly determine important systems and consolidate the surviving pieces of your network environment following a ransomware penetration and configure them into a functioning network.

Progent's security group uses best of breed project management tools to orchestrate the complex restoration process. Progent understands the importance of working quickly and in concert with a customer's management and Information Technology staff to prioritize tasks and to put critical services back on-line as fast as humanly possible.

Client Case Study: A Successful Crypto-Ransomware Penetration Recovery
A small business engaged Progent after their company was crashed by the Ryuk ransomware. Ryuk is thought to have been launched by North Korean government sponsored cybercriminals, suspected of using approaches exposed from the U.S. National Security Agency. Ryuk seeks specific companies with little tolerance for operational disruption and is one of the most profitable examples of ransomware. Well Known targets include Data Resolution, a California-based info warehousing and cloud computing business, and the Chicago Tribune. Progent's client is a single-location manufacturer based in the Chicago metro area with around 500 employees. The Ryuk event had shut down all essential operations and manufacturing capabilities. The majority of the client's information backups had been online at the time of the attack and were damaged. The client was evaluating paying the ransom (in excess of $200K) and wishfully thinking for the best, but ultimately reached out to Progent.

Progent worked together with the client to quickly get our arms around and prioritize the critical elements that had to be recovered in order to restart business functions:

• Windows Active Directory
• Microsoft Exchange Server
• Accounting and Manufacturing Software

In less than two days, Progent was able to restore Active Directory to its pre-attack state. Progent then performed rebuilding and storage recovery on essential servers. All Microsoft Exchange Server ties and attributes were intact, which accelerated the restore of Exchange. Progent was able to locate intact OST data files (Outlook Email Off-Line Data Files) on various desktop computers in order to recover email messages. A not too old off-line backup of the client's accounting/MRP software made them able to restore these required programs back available to users. Although major work needed to be completed to recover completely from the Ryuk virus, the most important systems were recovered quickly:

Throughout the next few weeks critical milestones in the recovery project were made in close collaboration between Progent consultants and the client:

• Self-hosted web sites were brought back up without losing any information.
• The MailStore Server containing more than 4 million historical emails was spun up and accessible to users.
• CRM/Customer Orders/Invoices/AP/Accounts Receivables (AR)/Inventory Control functions were 100 percent functional.
• A new Palo Alto 850 firewall was set up.
• Ninety percent of the user desktops were fully operational.

Conclusion
A possible company-ending catastrophe was dodged through the efforts of results-oriented professionals, a wide array of technical expertise, and tight teamwork. Although in analyzing the event afterwards the ransomware penetration described here would have been disabled with current cyber security technology and recognized best practices, user and IT administrator education, and appropriate security procedures for backup and keeping systems up to date with security patches, the reality is that state-sponsored criminal cyber gangs from Russia, North Korea and elsewhere are tireless and represent an ongoing threat. If you do fall victim to a ransomware attack, feel confident that Progent's team of experts has extensive experience in crypto-ransomware virus defense, cleanup, and file recovery.

To read or download a PDF version of this case study, please click:
Progent's Crypto-Ransomware Virus Recovery Case Study Datasheet. (PDF - 282 KB)

Additional Ransomware Protection Services Offered by Progent
Progent can provide companies in Southfield a portfolio of remote monitoring and security evaluation services designed to assist you to minimize the threat from ransomware. These services utilize modern artificial intelligence capability to uncover zero-day variants of ransomware that are able to escape detection by legacy signature-based anti-virus products.

• ProSight Managed Service Plans: for Small to Mid-size Businesses
  Progent's ProSight Managed IT Service Packages make it realistic for small and mid-size companies to deploy Remote Monitoring and Management (RMM) technology to create advanced network resilience. Progent handles the necessary monitoring and management for you, so your network scales easily without becoming an obstacle. For a low and predictable monthly price, Progent's experienced IT team can be your complete technology safety net. Basic plans include RMM, security, automatic monthly patching, and documentation. As your needs expand, you can add low-cost subscriptions to advanced options like as SaaS M365/Google Workspace backup, Multi-Factor Authentication, pen testing, or WiFi management.

• ProSight LAN Watch: Server and Desktop Remote Monitoring and Management
  ProSight LAN Watch is Progent's server and desktop remote monitoring managed service that uses advanced remote monitoring and management techniques to help keep your network operating efficiently by tracking the state of vital assets that drive your information system. When ProSight LAN Watch detects a problem, an alert is sent automatically to your specified IT management staff and your assigned Progent consultant so any potential issues can be resolved before they can impact productivity. Find out more about ProSight LAN Watch server and desktop monitoring services.

• ProSight LAN Watch with NinjaOne RMM: Unified RMM for Networks, Servers, and Desktops
  ProSight LAN Watch with NinjaOne RMM software delivers a unified, cloud-based solution for monitoring and managing your client-server infrastructure by providing an environment for performing common time-consuming jobs. These include health checking, patch management, automated remediation, endpoint deployment, backup and restore, anti-virus protection, remote access, standard and custom scripts, resource inventory, endpoint profile reporting, and troubleshooting assistance. When ProSight LAN Watch with NinjaOne RMM uncovers a serious issue, it transmits an alarm to your designated IT staff and your Progent technical consultant so that emerging issues can be taken care of before they impact your network. Learn more details about ProSight LAN Watch with NinjaOne RMM server and desktop remote monitoring consulting.

• ProSight WAN Watch: Network Infrastructure Remote Monitoring and Management
  ProSight WAN Watch is an infrastructure management service that makes it simple and affordable for small and mid-sized businesses to diagram, track, enhance and troubleshoot their connectivity hardware such as routers and switches, firewalls, and wireless controllers plus servers, client computers and other devices. Using state-of-the-art Remote Monitoring and Management (RMM) technology, WAN Watch ensures that network diagrams are always updated, copies and manages the configuration information of virtually all devices on your network, monitors performance, and generates alerts when issues are detected. By automating time-consuming management and troubleshooting processes, WAN Watch can cut hours off ordinary tasks such as making network diagrams, reconfiguring your network, locating appliances that require critical updates, or resolving performance bottlenecks. Learn more about ProSight WAN Watch network infrastructure management consulting.

• ProSight Reporting: Real-time Reporting for Ticketing and Network Monitoring Platforms
  ProSight Reporting is a growing line of real-time reporting plug-ins designed to work with the industry's top ticketing and network monitoring applications such as ConnectWise Manage, ConnectWise Automate, Customer Thermometer, Auvik, and SentinelOne. ProSight Reporting incorporates Microsoft Graph and features color coding to highlight and contextualize key issues such as spotty support follow-through or machines with missing patches. By identifying ticketing or network health concerns clearly and in near-real time, ProSight Reporting improves network value, reduces management hassle, and saves money. For more information, see ProSight Reporting for ticketing and network monitoring platforms.

• ProSight Data Protection Services: Managed Backup and Disaster Recovery Services
  Progent has worked with advanced backup/restore technology providers to create ProSight Data Protection Services, a selection of subscription-based management outsourcing plans that provide backup-as-a-service (BaaS). ProSight DPS services automate and track your backup processes and allow transparent backup and rapid restoration of critical files, apps, images, and virtual machines. ProSight DPS helps you protect against data loss caused by equipment failures, natural calamities, fire, cyber attacks like ransomware, human mistakes, malicious insiders, or software bugs. Managed backup services in the ProSight DPS product family include ProSight DPS Altaro VM Backup, ProSight 365 Total Backup (formerly Altaro 365 Backup), ProSight ECHO Backup based on Barracuda purpose-built storage, and ProSight DPS MSP360 Hybrid Backup. Your Progent expert can help you to identify which of these fully managed services are best suited for your IT environment.

• ProSight Email Guard: Inbound and Outbound Spam Filtering and Data Leakage Protection
  ProSight Email Guard is Progent's spam filtering service that uses the technology of leading information security vendors to deliver web-based control and world-class protection for all your inbound and outbound email. The hybrid structure of Progent's Email Guard managed service integrates a Cloud Protection Layer with an on-premises gateway appliance to offer advanced defense against spam, viruses, Dos Attacks, Directory Harvest Attacks, and other email-based malware. The cloud filter serves as a preliminary barricade and blocks most unwanted email from reaching your network firewall. This reduces your vulnerability to external attacks and saves network bandwidth and storage space. Email Guard's on-premises security gateway appliance adds a further level of analysis for inbound email. For outgoing email, the on-premises security gateway provides anti-virus and anti-spam protection, protection against data leaks, and email encryption. The local gateway can also assist Microsoft Exchange Server to monitor and safeguard internal email that stays within your corporate firewall. For more details, see ProSight Email Guard spam and content filtering.

• ProSight Duo Multi-Factor Authentication: ID Confirmation, Endpoint Policy Enforcement, and Protected Single Sign-on (SSO)
  Progent's Duo authentication services incorporate Cisco's Duo cloud technology to defend against compromised passwords by using two-factor authentication. Duo supports one-tap identity confirmation on iOS, Google Android, and other out-of-band devices. With 2FA, when you log into a secured application and give your password you are requested to confirm who you are via a unit that only you have and that is accessed using a separate network channel. A broad selection of devices can be used as this second form of authentication including an iPhone or Android or watch, a hardware token, a landline telephone, etc. You may designate several verification devices. To learn more about Duo identity authentication services, refer to Cisco Duo MFA two-factor authentication (2FA) services.

• Outsourced/Co-managed Call Center: Help Desk Managed Services
  Progent's Support Desk services permit your IT group to outsource Call Center services to Progent or divide responsibilities for support services seamlessly between your internal support resources and Progent's nationwide roster of certified IT service engineers and subject matter experts (SMEs). Progent's Shared Help Desk Service offers a smooth supplement to your in-house IT support organization. User access to the Help Desk, delivery of technical assistance, escalation, trouble ticket creation and tracking, efficiency measurement, and management of the service database are consistent regardless of whether incidents are resolved by your corporate network support organization, by Progent, or by a combination. Find out more about Progent's outsourced/co-managed Service Desk services.

• Active Protection Against Ransomware: Machine Learning-based Ransomware Detection and Cleanup
  Progent's Active Defense Against Ransomware is an endpoint protection managed service that incorporates next generation behavior-based machine learning technology to guard endpoints as well as servers and VMs against modern malware attacks such as ransomware and file-less exploits, which easily evade traditional signature-matching AV products. Progent Active Security Monitoring services protect on-premises and cloud resources and offers a single platform to automate the entire threat lifecycle including blocking, detection, mitigation, cleanup, and post-attack forensics. Top capabilities include one-click rollback with Windows VSS and real-time network-wide immunization against new attacks. Read more about Progent's ransomware defense and cleanup services.

• ProSight IT Asset Management: Network Documentation Management
  Progent's ProSight IT Asset Management service is a cloud-based IT documentation management service that allows you to create, maintain, retrieve and protect information related to your IT infrastructure, procedures, business apps, and services. You can instantly locate passwords or IP addresses and be warned about upcoming expirations of SSL certificates ,domains or warranties. By cleaning up and organizing your network documentation, you can save up to half of time wasted looking for critical information about your network. ProSight IT Asset Management includes a common repository for holding and collaborating on all documents related to managing your network infrastructure like standard operating procedures (SOPs) and How-To's. ProSight IT Asset Management also offers advanced automation for gathering and relating IT information. Whether you're making enhancements, performing maintenance, or reacting to a crisis, ProSight IT Asset Management gets you the information you need as soon as you need it. Find out more about Progent's ProSight IT Asset Management service.

• Patch Management: Patch Management Services
  Progent's support services for patch management offer organizations of all sizes a versatile and cost-effective alternative for evaluating, validating, scheduling, applying, and tracking software and firmware updates to your dynamic information system. Besides optimizing the security and reliability of your computer environment, Progent's software/firmware update management services permit your IT staff to concentrate on more strategic projects and tasks that derive maximum business value from your network. Read more about Progent's software/firmware update management services.

• ProSight Virtual Hosting: Hosted Virtual Machines at Progent's World-class Data Center
  With Progent's ProSight Virtual Hosting service, a small or mid-size business can have its key servers and applications hosted in a secure fault tolerant data center on a high-performance virtual host configured and maintained by Progent's IT support experts. With Progent's ProSight Virtual Hosting service model, the client retains ownership of the data, the OS platforms, and the applications. Because the system is virtualized, it can be moved easily to a different hosting environment without a lengthy and difficult reinstallation procedure. With ProSight Virtual Hosting, your business is not tied one hosting service. Find out more details about ProSight Virtual Hosting services.

• ProSight Active Security Monitoring: Endpoint Protection and Ransomware Defense
  Progent's ProSight Active Security Monitoring (ASM) is an endpoint protection (EPP) service that incorporates SentinelOne's next generation behavior analysis tools to defend physical and virtual endpoints against modern malware attacks such as ransomware and email phishing, which easily get by legacy signature-based anti-virus products. ProSight ASM safeguards on-premises and cloud-based resources and offers a single platform to address the entire malware attack progression including blocking, infiltration detection, containment, cleanup, and post-attack forensics. Top capabilities include single-click rollback using Windows VSS and automatic network-wide immunization against newly discovered attacks. Progent is a SentinelOne Partner, dealer, and integrator. Find out more about Progent's ProSight Active Security Monitoring (ASM) endpoint protection and ransomware recovery.

• ProSight Enhanced Security Protection (ESP): Physical and Virtual Endpoint Security and Microsoft Exchange Email Filtering
  Progent's ProSight Enhanced Security Protection services offer economical in-depth protection for physical servers and virtual machines, workstations, smartphones, and Exchange Server. ProSight ESP uses adaptive security and advanced machine learning for continuously monitoring and reacting to security threats from all vectors. ProSight ESP offers two-way firewall protection, penetration alerts, device management, and web filtering through cutting-edge technologies packaged within one agent managed from a single control. Progent's data protection and virtualization experts can assist your business to plan and implement a ProSight ESP deployment that meets your company's specific needs and that helps you prove compliance with government and industry information protection standards. Progent will help you define and implement security policies that ProSight ESP will enforce, and Progent will monitor your IT environment and respond to alarms that call for urgent attention. Progent can also assist your company to set up and test a backup and disaster recovery solution like ProSight Data Protection Services (DPS) so you can get back in business rapidly from a potentially disastrous cyber attack such as ransomware. Read more about Progent's ProSight Enhanced Security Protection unified endpoint security and Exchange email filtering.