Thursday, September 23, 2021

Howard University’s Devastating Ransomware Attack Can Teach Other Colleges a Valuable Lesson - JOSEPHINE WOLFF, Slate

The Howard story is a sobering one for those of us at universities hoping for a relatively smooth return to something resembling normal operations this year. It’s also a stark warning of just how much work all organizations, not just college campuses, need to be doing right now to prepare for the possibility of ransomware attacks. That preparation goes beyond just creating back-ups of crucial data and systems—it means also running regular drills for how to get critical networks back up and operating using only those back-ups. Without a clear and practiced procedure for resuming operations in the wake of a ransomware attack, the fallout can be immensely disruptive and continue for days, or even weeks, as organizations scramble to set up alternative systems.

https://slate.com/technology/2021/09/howard-university-ransomware-attack.html