24x7 Spartanburg Urgent Crypto-Ransomware
Malware Identification and Repair Support

Crypto-Ransomware : Your Worst Information Technology Disaster
Ransomware has become a modern cyber pandemic that represents an extinction-level danger for organizations unprepared for an attack. Different iterations of ransomware like the Dharma, CryptoWall, Bad Rabbit, SamSam and MongoLock cryptoworms have been replicating for many years and continue to cause destruction. The latest versions of ransomware like Ryuk, Maze, Sodinokibi, DopplePaymer, Snatch or Nephilim, plus frequent as yet unnamed viruses, not only encrypt on-line data but also infect many configured system protection mechanisms. Files synched to off-site disaster recovery sites can also be ransomed. In a poorly architected environment, it can make any recovery impossible and basically sets the entire system back to zero.

Restoring services and information following a ransomware outage becomes a race against the clock as the targeted organization fights to contain, remove the ransomware, and resume enterprise-critical activity. Because crypto-ransomware requires time to move laterally, assaults are frequently sprung during weekends and nights, when penetrations tend to take longer to identify. This compounds the difficulty of rapidly assembling and organizing an experienced response team.

Progent has a variety of support services for securing enterprises from crypto-ransomware attacks. These include team member training to help recognize and not fall victim to phishing attempts, ProSight Active Security Monitoring (ASM) for remote monitoring and management, in addition to installation of the latest generation security appliances with AI capabilities from SentinelOne to identify and quarantine new cyber threats automatically. Progent in addition offers the services of experienced ransomware recovery consultants with the talent and commitment to reconstruct a breached network as quickly as possible.

Progent's Ransomware Restoration Help
Soon after a crypto-ransomware event, sending the ransom in cryptocurrency does not guarantee that merciless criminals will return the keys to decipher any or all of your files. Kaspersky Labs determined that seventeen percent of crypto-ransomware victims never recovered their files even after having sent off the ransom, resulting in additional losses. The risk is also expensive. Ryuk ransoms are often a few hundred thousand dollars. For larger organizations, the ransom can be in the millions. The alternative is to setup from scratch the key parts of your IT environment. Without access to essential information backups, this requires a wide range of IT skills, top notch project management, and the willingness to work 24x7 until the job is complete.

For decades, Progent has offered certified expert Information Technology services for businesses across the US and has achieved Microsoft's Partnership certification status in the Datacenter and Cloud Productivity competencies. Progent's team of subject matter experts includes professionals who have earned top industry certifications in important technologies like Microsoft, Cisco, VMware, and popular distributions of Linux. Progent's security consultants have earned internationally-renowned certifications including CISM, CISSP, CRISC, SANS GIAC, and CMMC 2.0. (See Progent's certifications). Progent in addition has experience in accounting and ERP software solutions. This breadth of expertise affords Progent the capability to quickly identify critical systems and integrate the surviving pieces of your computer network system following a ransomware penetration and rebuild them into a functioning system.

Progent's ransomware team of experts uses state-of-the-art project management tools to coordinate the sophisticated recovery process. Progent understands the urgency of working quickly and together with a client's management and Information Technology team members to prioritize tasks and to get the most important systems back on line as fast as humanly possible.

Client Story: A Successful Crypto-Ransomware Virus Recovery
A business sought out Progent after their network was penetrated by Ryuk ransomware. Ryuk is believed to have been launched by Northern Korean state criminal gangs, possibly adopting techniques leaked from the U.S. National Security Agency. Ryuk attacks specific organizations with limited tolerance for disruption and is among the most lucrative incarnations of ransomware. Well Known victims include Data Resolution, a California-based information warehousing and cloud computing company, and the Chicago Tribune. Progent's client is a single-location manufacturing company based in the Chicago metro area and has around 500 staff members. The Ryuk event had frozen all essential operations and manufacturing processes. The majority of the client's data protection had been on-line at the beginning of the attack and were encrypted. The client was pursuing financing for paying the ransom demand (in excess of $200K) and wishfully thinking for good luck, but ultimately brought in Progent.

Progent worked hand in hand the customer to rapidly understand and assign priority to the essential elements that needed to be restored to make it possible to continue departmental operations:

• Windows Active Directory
• Email
• MRP System

Within two days, Progent was able to re-build Windows Active Directory to its pre-intrusion state. Progent then completed reinstallations and storage recovery on the most important systems. All Microsoft Exchange Server schema and configuration information were usable, which accelerated the rebuild of Exchange. Progent was also able to assemble intact OST data files (Microsoft Outlook Off-Line Folder Files) on user desktop computers and laptops in order to recover email data. A not too old off-line backup of the client's financials/ERP systems made them able to return these vital services back online for users. Although significant work remained to recover totally from the Ryuk virus, core services were returned to operations quickly:

Over the next couple of weeks important milestones in the restoration process were made in close cooperation between Progent engineers and the client:

• Self-hosted web sites were restored with no loss of data.
• The MailStore Exchange Server exceeding 4 million historical emails was brought online and accessible to users.
• CRM/Orders/Invoices/AP/Accounts Receivables (AR)/Inventory Control modules were 100 percent recovered.
• A new Palo Alto Networks 850 security appliance was installed.
• Most of the desktop computers were fully operational.

Conclusion
A potential business-ending disaster was dodged due to top-tier experts, a wide range of technical expertise, and tight collaboration. Although in retrospect the crypto-ransomware incident described here should have been identified and prevented with up-to-date cyber security technology solutions and best practices, user and IT administrator training, and well designed security procedures for information protection and applying software patches, the fact is that state-sponsored hackers from China, North Korea and elsewhere are relentless and are not going away. If you do get hit by a ransomware attack, remember that Progent's team of professionals has extensive experience in ransomware virus defense, cleanup, and file recovery.

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

Additional Ransomware Protection Services Offered by Progent
Progent can provide businesses in Spartanburg a range of remote monitoring and security evaluation services to help you to minimize your vulnerability to ransomware. These services utilize modern machine learning technology to uncover zero-day strains of crypto-ransomware that are able to escape detection by legacy signature-based anti-virus solutions.

• ProSight Managed Service Packages: for Small to Mid-size Businesses
  Progent's ProSight Managed IT Service Packages make it realistic for small and mid-size companies to utilize Remote Monitoring and Management (RMM) solutions to achieve leading-edge IT resilience. Progent takes care of the daily monitoring and maintenance for you, so your system expands easily without holding you back. For a low and predictable monthly price, Progent's full-service IT group can be your complete technology safety net. Basic packages include remote monitoring and management (RMM), security, monthly patching, and reporting. As your needs expand, you can add low-cost subscriptions to best-of-breed options such as SaaS M365/Google Workspace backup and restore, Multi-Factor Authentication, pen testing, or WiFi management.

• ProSight LAN Watch: Server and Desktop Monitoring and Management
  ProSight LAN Watch is Progent's server and desktop monitoring service that incorporates advanced remote monitoring and management techniques to help keep your IT system operating efficiently by tracking the state of critical assets that power your business network. When ProSight LAN Watch detects a problem, an alarm is sent automatically to your specified IT staff and your Progent engineering consultant so all potential issues can be resolved before they can impact productivity. Learn more about ProSight LAN Watch server and desktop remote monitoring consulting.

• ProSight LAN Watch with NinjaOne RMM: Centralized RMM Solution for Networks, Servers, and Workstations
  ProSight LAN Watch with NinjaOne RMM software offers a centralized, cloud-based solution for managing your network, server, and desktop devices by offering tools for performing common tedious tasks. These include health monitoring, update management, automated repairs, endpoint deployment, backup and restore, anti-virus response, remote access, built-in and custom scripts, asset inventory, endpoint status reporting, and debugging help. When ProSight LAN Watch with NinjaOne RMM uncovers a serious incident, it transmits an alarm to your designated IT management staff and your assigned Progent consultant so that potential issues can be taken care of before they interfere with your network. Find out more about ProSight LAN Watch with NinjaOne RMM server and desktop monitoring consulting.

• ProSight WAN Watch: Network Infrastructure Management
  Progent's ProSight WAN Watch is a network infrastructure monitoring and management service that makes it easy and affordable for smaller organizations to map, monitor, enhance and troubleshoot their connectivity appliances such as routers, firewalls, and wireless controllers as well as servers, endpoints and other networked devices. Incorporating state-of-the-art Remote Monitoring and Management technology, WAN Watch makes sure that network maps are kept current, copies and manages the configuration information of virtually all devices on your network, tracks performance, and sends alerts when problems are detected. By automating time-consuming management processes, WAN Watch can cut hours off ordinary chores such as making network diagrams, expanding your network, finding devices that require critical software patches, or isolating performance problems. Find out more details about ProSight WAN Watch infrastructure monitoring and management services.

• ProSight Reporting: Real-time Reporting for Ticketing and Network Monitoring Platforms
  ProSight Reporting is a growing suite of real-time reporting utilities created to work with the industry's leading ticketing and network monitoring programs including ConnectWise Manage, ConnectWise Automate, Customer Thermometer, Auvik, and SentinelOne. ProSight Reporting incorporates Microsoft Graph and utilizes color coding to surface and contextualize key issues like spotty support follow-through or machines with out-of-date AVs. By identifying ticketing or network health problems concisely and in near-real time, ProSight Reporting enhances productivity, reduces management hassle, and saves money. For more information, see ProSight Reporting for ticketing and network monitoring applications.

• ProSight Data Protection Services (DPS): Backup and Recovery Services
  Progent has worked with leading backup software providers to create ProSight Data Protection Services (DPS), a portfolio of management offerings that deliver backup-as-a-service. ProSight DPS products manage and monitor your backup operations and allow transparent backup and rapid restoration of important files, applications, images, plus Hyper-V and VMware virtual machines. ProSight DPS lets you recover from data loss resulting from hardware failures, natural calamities, fire, cyber attacks such as ransomware, human mistakes, malicious employees, or software glitches. Managed backup services available in the ProSight DPS portfolio include ProSight DPS Altaro VM Backup, ProSight 365 Total Backup (formerly Altaro 365 Backup), ProSight DPS ECHO Backup using Barracuda dedicated hardware, and ProSight MSP360 Hybrid Backup. Your Progent expert can help you to determine which of these fully managed backup 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 and virus filtering service that incorporates the infrastructure of top information security vendors to deliver web-based control and comprehensive protection for all your inbound and outbound email. The hybrid structure of Email Guard managed service combines a Cloud Protection Layer with an on-premises security gateway appliance to offer advanced protection against spam, viruses, Denial of Service Attacks, Directory Harvest Attacks (DHAs), and other email-borne malware. The Cloud Protection Layer acts as a first line of defense and blocks most unwanted email from making it to your network firewall. This decreases your exposure to external attacks and saves system bandwidth and storage. Email Guard's on-premises gateway device provides a deeper level of inspection for inbound email. For outgoing email, the onsite gateway offers anti-virus and anti-spam protection, protection against data leaks, and email encryption. The local security gateway can also assist Exchange Server to track and safeguard internal email that originates and ends inside your security perimeter. For more details, visit Email Guard spam and content filtering.

• ProSight Duo Multi-Factor Authentication: Identity Validation, Endpoint Policy Enforcement, and Secure Single Sign-on
  Progent's Duo MFA managed services utilize Cisco's Duo technology to protect against password theft by using two-factor authentication (2FA). Duo supports one-tap identity verification with Apple iOS, Google Android, and other personal devices. Using 2FA, whenever you sign into a secured online account and give your password you are asked to confirm your identity via a device that only you have and that uses a different ("out-of-band") network channel. A broad range of out-of-band devices can be utilized for this second form of ID validation including an iPhone or Android or wearable, a hardware token, a landline telephone, etc. You may designate multiple validation devices. To learn more about Duo identity validation services, visit Duo MFA two-factor authentication (2FA) services.

• Outsourced/Co-managed Service Center: Support Desk Managed Services
  Progent's Call Desk services permit your information technology group to outsource Call Center services to Progent or divide responsibilities for Service Desk support seamlessly between your internal support resources and Progent's nationwide roster of certified IT service engineers and subject matter experts (SMEs). Progent's Shared Service Desk offers a transparent supplement to your internal network support team. End user access to the Help Desk, delivery of support, problem escalation, trouble ticket creation and tracking, performance measurement, and maintenance of the support database are consistent whether incidents are taken care of by your in-house network support resources, by Progent's team, or both. Learn more about Progent's outsourced/co-managed Service Desk services.

• Progent Active Protection Against Ransomware: AI-based Ransomware Identification and Cleanup
  Progent's Active Protection Against Ransomware is an endpoint protection (EPP) solution that utilizes next generation behavior-based analysis technology to guard endpoints and servers and VMs against modern malware assaults like ransomware and file-less exploits, which routinely escape traditional signature-based anti-virus products. Progent Active Security Monitoring services safeguard on-premises and cloud-based resources and provides a single platform to address the entire threat progression including protection, infiltration detection, mitigation, cleanup, and forensics. Top capabilities include one-click rollback with Windows Volume Shadow Copy Service (VSS) and automatic network-wide immunization against newly discovered threats. Learn more about Progent's ransomware protection and cleanup services.

• ProSight IT Asset Management: Network Documentation Management
  Progent's ProSight IT Asset Management service is an IT infrastructure documentation management service that allows you to capture, update, retrieve and safeguard data related to your network infrastructure, procedures, applications, and services. You can quickly find passwords or IP addresses and be warned about impending expirations of SSLs ,domains or warranties. By cleaning up and managing your IT documentation, you can eliminate as much as half of time wasted trying to find vital information about your IT network. ProSight IT Asset Management features a common repository for holding and collaborating on all documents required for managing your network infrastructure like recommended procedures and How-To's. ProSight IT Asset Management also offers a high level of automation for gathering and relating IT data. Whether you're making enhancements, performing maintenance, or reacting to an emergency, ProSight IT Asset Management gets you the knowledge you need the instant you need it. Find out more about ProSight IT Asset Management service.

• Progent's Patch Management: Software/Firmware Update Management Services
  Progent's managed services for patch management offer businesses of any size a versatile and cost-effective solution for assessing, validating, scheduling, applying, and tracking updates to your dynamic IT network. In addition to maximizing the security and functionality of your IT network, Progent's software/firmware update management services free up time for your IT team to concentrate on more strategic initiatives and tasks that derive the highest business value from your network. Learn more about Progent's software/firmware update management services.

• ProSight Virtual Hosting: Hosted Virtual Machines at Progent's World-class Data Center
  With ProSight Virtual Hosting service, a small or mid-size organization can have its critical servers and apps hosted in a secure Tier III data center on a high-performance virtual host configured and managed by Progent's IT support experts. Under the ProSight Virtual Hosting service model, the customer retains ownership of the data, the OS software, and the applications. Because the system is virtualized, it can be moved immediately to a different hosting solution without requiring a lengthy and technically risky reinstallation procedure. With ProSight Virtual Hosting, your business is not tied a single hosting provider. Learn more 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 service that incorporates SentinelOne's cutting edge behavior analysis technology to guard physical and virtual endpoints against modern malware attacks like ransomware and email phishing, which easily get by traditional signature-based AV tools. ProSight ASM protects on-premises and cloud resources and offers a single platform to automate the entire malware attack progression including protection, identification, mitigation, remediation, and forensics. Key features include single-click rollback using Windows Volume Shadow Copy Service and real-time system-wide immunization against newly discovered threats. Progent is a SentinelOne Partner, reseller, and integrator. Learn more about Progent's ProSight Active Security Monitoring (ASM) endpoint protection and ransomware defense.

• ProSight Enhanced Security Protection (ESP): Physical and Virtual Endpoint Protection and Microsoft Exchange Email Filtering
  Progent's ProSight Enhanced Security Protection services offer affordable in-depth protection for physical and virtual servers, desktops, mobile devices, and Exchange Server. ProSight ESP uses contextual security and modern behavior analysis for round-the-clock monitoring and reacting to security threats from all vectors. ProSight ESP offers firewall protection, penetration alerts, device control, and web filtering via leading-edge tools packaged within one agent accessible from a single console. Progent's data protection and virtualization consultants can assist your business to design and configure a ProSight ESP deployment that addresses your company's unique needs and that helps you achieve and demonstrate compliance with government and industry information security standards. Progent will help you specify and configure security policies that ProSight ESP will manage, and Progent will monitor your IT environment and respond to alarms that require urgent attention. Progent's consultants can also assist you to install and test a backup and restore solution like ProSight Data Protection Services so you can recover rapidly from a destructive security attack such as ransomware. Find out more about Progent's ProSight Enhanced Security Protection (ESP) unified physical and virtual endpoint security and Exchange email filtering.