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A particularly vicious form of malware has grown exponentially in recent years – ransomware to be specific. This type of software restricts access to your files until a ransom is paid to its creators. Incidents have been increasing, and unfortunately some victims are resorting to paying the ransom in order to regain access. But is that the only option?

Ransomware is like most common illnesses insofar as you or someone in your company will get it; it is simply a matter of when. And like the common cold, there are plenty of “folk remedies” widely circulated, but the truth is that there is no working cure for ransomware. The best option is to expect your files to be held for ransom at some point and make appropriate preparations. By having a plan in place, you will find that an infection is little more than a hit in productivity: annoying, but survivable. Failing to prepare, however, means recovery will be expensive and may even be incurable.

Fortunately, the steps of preparation are simple. To start, you should implement full systems imaging backups. At Brainlink we backup our clients’ files a minimum of twice a day, and certain clients we backup every four hours. These backups need to be tested regularly; weekly testing of random files would be the minimum recommendation. Finally, be sure to train your staff to recognize when they have been hit with ransomware.

In addition to having a plan in the event of an infection, you can take steps to prevent an infection, too. Block advertising and social media sites at your firewall, and ban the use of Internet Explorer. Disable or minimize the use of Flash and Java on desktops. Using your best judgment, do not click on files, ads, or downloads in your email or on the internet that appear suspicious.

brainlink brainSTORM

When Your Computer Has Been Taken Hostage:

What To Do About Ransomware

Continued on Page 2

Continued from Page 1

How to Use SOPs to Cut Expenses, Cross Train Your Team, and Increase Client Satisfaction

You might think that IT problems are too unique to use Stand Operating Procedures, but you’d be wrong. You can use SOPs to great advantage in your business; in fact they can completely transform your business.

Eliminate Vertical Data Silos If you’re not using SOPs, each employee is a vertical data silo of their own knowledge base and your client’s systems, processes, and people. By creating and effectively using SOPs, you can take all the guesswork out of the ‘rinse and repeat’ functions so that they can be completed by anyone very quickly. For example, a year ago in November we on-boarded a client with 10 servers and it took my lead engineer 24 man-hours to do the whole job. Before that we were spending 16 hours a server, so it would have taken 160 man-hours.

We went from 16 hours per server to roughly two-and-a-half hours per server. We did more work in less

time because we had planned things out, we have SOPs, we use project plans, and we’ve systemized our

business. That’s a huge cost savings.

Cross Training by SOPs

For certain technologies, we have our thought leaders. I’ve got a firewall guy, and we’ve just assigned all

the firewall SOP’s to him because he’s just so good at them. Another guy writes all the backup SOPs, but

we do cross-train each other. We can’t do 100% of what they do, but we can do 90%, and most days

that’s enough to keep the business moving and our clients happy.

The point of the cross training is so that other people can help get the work done. I’m good at

marketing, but if I’m out sick, travelling, busy, or stuck somewhere, and somebody else has to be able to

get the newsletter and the email blast out, we can do it. If I don’t have a computer, it doesn’t mean we

have to be crippled.

Email me at raj@brainlink.com if you would like to learn more about SOPs and how they can increase

your productivity.

Watch This: https://youtu.be/HD-8eB20M6c

If you do have a computer that is infected, disconnect it from the network immediately to help prevent further damage. If you see a file named DECRYPT_INSTRUCTION.TXT, DECRYPT_INSTRUCTION.html, or DECRYPT_INSTRUCTION.url in any folders, you should note the path of the file and the encrypted files you were trying to access. Contact Brainlink at 917-685-7731 (or email support@brainlink.com), and shut down your PC immediately.

Remember, although it is a threat, ransomware doesn’t have to be devastating! Make changes now to equip you staff and your business, and you’ll be glad you did.

The Joy of SOPs

Not holding Your Information Hostage

Throughout my career, I have met with a lot of firms and in case after case, we see the same thing. The IT company holds the client's information hostage. You know what I'm talking about. Who has all the passwords? The IT company Who has all the warranty data? The IT company Who has all your software license information? The

IT company And what happens when you ask them for it? In almost every case, the IT vendor has said a variation of the following: 1) We don't have this information or 2) Yeah, we have it. But it will cost you 5, 10, 20, 50 billable hours for me to gather it.

This is MADNESS! Your information is owned by you and belongs to you. The IT vendor can be the custodian, but you are the owner.

Demand that your IT vendor keeps all your documentation up to date, and demand copies of it from them. At Brainlink, we live by this principle. ALL client data is owned by the client. All SOPs, documentation, vendor information, licenses, passwords that are purchased by you belong to you. We record it, we track it, and we deliver it to you in your RunBook. If you would like to see what a complete RunBook looks like and why you should have one, give me a call at 917-685-7731 or email raj@brainlink.com.

Protecting You The Lighter Side

Hitch-hiking A guy was hitch-hiking on a very dark and stormy night. Suddenly he saw a car roll slowly toward him and stop.

He jumped into the back seat and closed the door. Then realized there was nobody behind the wheel. But the car started slowly rolling forward again.

He was really freaked out when he noticed that a mysterious hand appeared just before every curve. The guy jumped out of the car and ran to the nearest town. In shock, he went to a restaurant and started telling everybody about the horrible experience he just went through.

Then two guys walked into the same restaurant. Looking around for a table one said, "Hey, look, isn't that the jerk who got in the car when we were pushing it?"

An Engineer's Conversion Factors 1. Ratio of an igloo's circumference to its diameter =

Eskimo Pi 2. 2000 pounds of Chinese Soup = Won ton 3. Time it takes to sail 220 yards at 1 nautical mile per

hour = Knotfurlong 4. Half a large intestine: = 1 semicolon 5. 1,000,000 aches = 1 megahurtz 6. 1000 grams of wet socks = 1 literhosen 7. 1 trillion pins = 1 terrapin 8. 10 rations = 1 decaration 9. 100 rations = 1 C-Ration 10. 2 monograms = 1 diagram 11. 8 nickels = 2 paradigms 12. Basic unit of laryngitis = 1 hoarsepower

April 22, 2015: Coffee Break with Sabra Interview, Only Dumb People Live in Smarthouses: Warnings for the Techno Fetishists www.brainlink.com/about-us/media May 13—GHA Technologies— What You Need To Know About The Advanced Malware Apocalypse—The Roosevelt Hotel 45 East 45th Street, 9-10 am June 2 –3, 2015: Raj to speak at the New York State Cyber Security Conference in Albany, NY September 28—October 1, 2015: 61st Annual ASIS International Seminar in Anaheim, CA October 22, 2015: National American Payroll Association Seminar—Payroll Heists, Cybercriminals, and You: Best Practices in Protecting Your Organization July 14, 2015: Microsoft ends support for Windows Server 2003 End of support for Windows Server 2003 means: No further updates or security patches released. Loss of compliance. Various industry regulations

and industry standards will no longer be able to be achieved if you are using unsupported operating systems on your network.

Increased security risks. Any server running this operating system will be completely exposed to serious hacker attacks aimed at taking control of your network, stealing your data or crashing your systems.

Call Us at (347)460-2238 to develop your

Server Migration Plans!

About Raj Goel, CISSP Security, Compliance & IT Expert

Raj Goel, CISSP, is the co-founder of Brainlink International, Inc., an IT consulting company based in New York City. With over twenty years of experience in the IT industry, Goel has helped develop security solutions for financial services, architecture, construction, property management and health care industries. He has also worked with construction firms, private equity firms, architects, hospitals and regional medical centers in the northeast. Working with growing companies, Goel provides technology solutions that facilitate the growth of revenues and profitability. He has presented over 100 seminars and conferences across the world. He has appeared as an IT Security Expert in interviews on television and in newspapers and magazines including WPIX-11, PBS Nightly Business Review, Entrepreneur Magazine, Information Security Magazine, Crain's NY, and The New York Times. raj@brainlink.com 917-685-7731 www.RajGoel.com

Look for Raj’s Next Book!

Shh….right now, it’s a secret...but pretty soon, the next book will be on Amazon!

If you’d like early access to it, email Raj at

raj@brainlink.com.

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