UK businesses prepare for ransomware attacks by buying Bitcoin

British businesses are ready to pay as much as £136,000 to get their files back after a ransomware attack. This is according to a new report by Citrix and One Poll, based on a poll of 500 IT decision makers at UK companies with 250 or more employees.

The report says these new figures are four times higher than 12 months ago, highlighting the growth of ransomware risk among businesses on the Island.

Not only are they willing to pay, but they are also stockpiling Bitcoin so that they can respond quicker in case of an emergency. Every third British large enterprise has more than 30 bitcoins (worth well over £50,000) in their possession at the moment.

A fifth of businesses are not prepared to pay if they get hit by ransomware, the study has shown, adding that this percentage is down from 25 percent last year. Also, smaller organizations are more likely to have Bitcoin in their possession, just in case, than large enterprises.

What’s more -- more than half of British businesses still don’t have the habit of backing up data once a day.

"Cybercriminals are resorting to ransomware to exploit the vulnerabilities that exist within British organizations," says Chris Mayers, chief security architect at Citrix.

"This is no secret with global attacks hitting the headlines, yet many businesses are still being caught out. Organizations must ensure they’re prepared for the reality of this threat and take action to both safeguard the IT network for an attack and protect mission-critical data."

Published under license from ITProPortal.com, a Future plc Publication. All rights reserved.

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