What Does the SolarWinds Malware Attack Mean for SMBs?
Tyler Doerner, VP, Application Services
February 8, 2021
By now, you’ve probably heard of the SolarWinds malware attack. Highly sophisticated, the cloud and security attack began in March 2020 and its ramifications to the US government and private companies (including Microsoft) are still being felt today.
Here’s a brief overview of what happened:
- SolarWinds is a Texas-based company that sells software that enables organizations to see what’s happening on their computer networks.
- Hackers based in Russia inserted malicious code into an update of SolarWind’s software, called Orion.
- Approximately 18,000 SolarWinds customers installed the tainted update onto their systems, affecting local, state and federal US agencies and private companies, including more than 40 customers from Microsoft.
- Known as a “supply-chain attack” since it infects software as it’s under assembly, the events enabled hackers to gain access to several government systems and turned a seemingly regular software update into a weapon.
So, what does this attack mean for SMBs everywhere?
The attack shows that it’s no longer enough to focus simply on prevention. With the growing number and level of sophistication of attacks, almost all small and medium sized companies will experience a breach at some point. In fact, Microsoft reports that, “In the past year, SMEs were the target of 43% of cyberattacks, and on average, the cost of each attack was $184,000, with a report suggesting that 60% of small businesses fold within six months of a cyberattack.”
Rather than focus solely on preventing attacks, it’s critical to have a plan in place for when a breach does occur. As former FBI Director James Comey said, there are two types of companies: those who’ve been hacked, and those who don’t realize it yet.
At WatServ, one way we help SMBs prepare and recover from attacks is with our Disaster Recovery as a Service (DRaaS) solution. With a price point to suit your needs, our goal is to ensure your business is covered so you can stay focused on what matters most.
Want to learn more about DRaaS or our other security solutions? Reach out today.
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WatServ is an IT solutions provider that helps organizations digitally transform through cloud technologies and managed services.
Serving clients as a trusted advisor since 2006, WatServ provides experience-tested, strategic solutions across all stages of the digital transformation journey. Clients choose WatServ to migrate infrastructure and applications to the cloud, secure critical data, implement disaster recovery, deploy virtual desktop, enable data-readiness for productivity solutions and manage IT environments.
Our clients span a broad range of industries, and we’re a global supplier of IT services for many Brookfield Portfolio Companies. To help our mid-size clients, we provide scalable offerings that simplify cloud adoption and drive business optimization. For enterprise clients, we co-create cloud solutions that enable stability and efficiency for complex IT tools and processes.
With more than 15 years of experience, WatServ has a track record of delivering quantifiable business results and a superior client experience. Ranked as one of Canada’s Top 100 Solution Providers for the last three years in a row, WatServ is always on.
