August 2020
Published by WSJ Pro Cybersecurity
When ransomware hackers take data hostage, companies hire specialist negotiators to help.
Ransomware is a scourge for businesses and governments of all sizes. Targets have ranged from major cities, such as Baltimore in May 2019, to health-care organizations and drug researchers working on treatments for Covid-19…
These negotiations can often be a race against time for both sides, said Eric Friedberg, co-president of insurer Aon PLC’s Stroz Friedberg cybersecurity business. For hackers, the longer negotiations continue, the more likely the victim organization will find a workaround to the encryption. For the victim, particularly those in vital critical infrastructure sectors, the length of time their systems are down can be a matter of life and death.
“Typically what you’re balancing is the speed at which you need to get the key versus the price you want to pay for it,” he said.
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