Ransomware

Files stored in Files.com are not scanned for malware or viruses.

End user controls are the responsibility of the customer. Please refer to the Files.com Shared Responsibility Model for more information.

Ransomware is a type of malware that threatens to permanently block access to your files, or threatens to publish your data, unless a ransom is paid.

Like other types of malware, ransomware can infect a system through various means but most typically by using a Trojan through various Phishing attacks.

Files stored in Files.com are not scanned for malware or viruses, including ransomware infected files.

Some early ransomware variants attempted to exfiltrate your data, sending it to your attacker, and then deleting or wiping your local data.

Currently, most variants will encrypt your data, overwriting your files with their encrypted versions.

In either scenario, a ransom note is left on your system demanding payment to have your files restored.

Ransomware is constantly evolving so it's difficult to exactly predict which systems will be targeted. Most ransomware affects end-user computers but can easily spread to other systems on the network, including servers, IoT devices, and more.

Attached storage, such as network drives and shared folders, can have its contents affected by any infected system on the network.

Affected files can also be backed up and synced, causing the overwriting and loss of backup copies.

Cloud-based SaaS solutions are unaffected by ransomware in that ransomware will not render the system inoperative. However, files and folders in cloud-based storage solutions can be affected if the storage is attached to an infected end-user computer. For example, if you use WebDAV to connect your computer to your Files.com folders then a ransomware infection on your computer could affect your folders on Files.com. This is also true for any similarly connected cloud storage such as Microsoft Azure Files, Google Drive, etc.

Internal servers and workstations at Files.com have appropriate virus scanning and malware protection software installed and configured.

Ransomware is so profitable and prolific, and phishing attacks so advanced and effective, that it's best to think in terms of when it will happen, rather than if it will happen.

Globally, according to Statistica, there were about 623 million ransomware attacks in 2021, and 493 million in 2022.

Ransomware encrypted files cannot be decrypted, except by the attacker, so it's important to keep an immutable backup copy of your important files.

Ransomware can disable or overwrite local backup systems so you should plan on implementing offline, off-premise, and immutable backup solutions. Some storage solutions provide file versioning, where previous copies of files are retained rather than being overwritten. Some storage solutions provide immutable (Write Once, Read Many) storage where files cannot be altered once they've been stored.

The best defense against ransomware is to have a resilient backup of the unaffected files which you can restore from.

Files.com can be used to backup your files as well as for immutable cloud storage for your data.

You can use our Automations feature to automatically archive a copy of each file to an archive location.