Ransomware Crisis: 43% of Data Remains Unrecoverable

Ransomware continues to wreak havoc, with organizations struggling to recover 43% of compromised data, according to Veeam’s 2024 Ransomware Trends Report. This malicious cyber threat remains the leading cause of IT outages and downtime, compromising 41% of data during attacks. The report indicates that only 57% of affected data is recoverable, leaving businesses vulnerable to significant data loss and operational disruption.

Growing Ransomware Threat

Dave Russell, Senior Vice President and Head of Strategy at Veeam, highlights the growing menace: “Ransomware is endemic, impacting 3 out of 4 organizations in 2023. While AI aids in creating smarter security measures, it also enables more sophisticated attacks. Our report shows ransomware will continue to escalate, imposing greater costs than anticipated. Organizations must prioritize cyber resiliency and rapid, clean recovery. By strengthening cybersecurity and implementing immutable backups, they can safeguard their critical data and ensure business continuity.”

Key Insights from the Veeam 2024 Ransomware Trends Report

1. Human Impact of Cyberattacks: The report surveyed 1,200 executives, information security professionals, and backup administrators, revealing the profound human toll of cyberattacks. Post-attack, 45% reported increased pressure on IT and security teams, with 26% experiencing productivity loss and 25% facing service disruptions. Additionally, 40% noted heightened stress levels and personal challenges.

2. Organizational Misalignment: Despite a focus on cyber-preparedness, 63% of organizations report misalignment between backup and cyber teams. A significant portion of security professionals (61%) and backup admins (75%) believe substantial improvements or complete system overhauls are needed.

3. Ransom Payments and Data Recovery: Alarmingly, 81% of organizations paid ransom demands, but one-third of them still couldn’t recover their data. More organizations struggled to recover even after paying than those that managed recovery without paying.

4. Financial Impact of Ransomware: Contrary to popular belief, having cyber insurance doesn’t necessarily lead to increased ransom payments. While 81% of organizations paid ransoms, only 32% of the total financial impact was recoverable. Cyber insurance covers only 62% of the costs, leaving significant expenses to be absorbed by the organization.

5. Importance of Robust Backups: The cornerstone of cyber preparedness is maintaining a “good backup.” The report shows that almost all organizations (98%) have an incident response team, though only 3% lack a playbook. Additionally, 75% now use hardened on-premises disks, and 85% utilize immutable cloud storage, marking improvements in data protection.

6. Universal Vulnerability: Both cloud and on-premises data are equally susceptible to attacks, emphasizing the need for comprehensive security measures across all IT infrastructure.

7. Risk of Reintroducing Infections: A concerning 63% of organizations risk reintroducing infections during recovery due to pressure to restore operations quickly, often skipping critical steps like rescanning quarantined data.

The Veeam 2024 Ransomware Trends Report underscores the critical need for organizations to bolster their cybersecurity measures and ensure rapid, clean data recovery. By addressing misalignment between teams and enhancing backup strategies, businesses can better protect their data and maintain operational resilience against the ever-evolving threat of ransomware.