HERBALIFE RANSOMWARE ATTACK TARGETS OVER 20 MILLION IN FIRST FEW DAYS

A new ransomware attack is underway worldwide, already targeting 20 million plus victims in the first few days. Ransomware encodes the files on your computer so that they are effectively no longer useful to you. You are then instructed to make a payment to the criminal behind the software in order to receive a tool to decode your files and make them useful again to you.

Here are the key facts to date:

Attack comes via email from Herbalife confirming an order or from a more generic “copier@______” address
Email includes an attachment which when opened launches the ransomware
There may be as many as 8,000 variants of the email messages
No victims that have paid a ransom have received a decryption tool so far

I should mention that today alone, our email security system have prevented over 3000 emails infected by this ransom-ware virus from reaching our users.

WHAT TO DO?

First, get the word out to everyone in your family or organization to be on the lookout for the Herbalife or “copier” email. Make sure all of your family members or associates are especially vigilant while this attack is underway and that they do not open attachments in emails, even if they are not one of the identified variants.

Second, ensure you have offline backups of all your critical data so that if you become a victim, you can recover. Shadowed or mirrored backups will likely be infected by the malware. Only backups that are offline from your primary systems can be used to recover from a ransomware attack.

Third, businesses should make adjustments to their incident response plan as necessary to prepare for this latest attack. If you do not have an incident response plan, you should immediately begin developing one.

Fourth, you should know the services and coverages of your current personal insurance and business insurance and incorporate that information into your thinking. If you don’t have such insurance coverages, or don’t know, contact us to help in your review.

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Robert H. Bourdeau

Without risk, there are no rewards.But when taking risks, it's important to ask "is it worth it?" Most of us are not good at evaluating risk. That's why I love insurance. When you get it, you realize that you have a tool for making choices. We can put ourselves out there, enjoy life and strive for personal and financial growth. When we fail, insurance gives us a way to recover financially, and we learn to be better. I'm a lifelong student with degrees in mathematics and computer science, a licensed insurance producer, and hold professional insurance designations including CPCU, CIC, and CRM.I enjoy distance running, bicycling, craft beers, cool people, and taking risks.