We’ve seen plenty of bad news about fraud. Scams are coming faster, more of them are succeeding, and companies’ losses are mounting. Many organizations are under-protected and insufficiently prepared. The data and analysis showing these facts are well-documented. Fearmongering, however, isn’t our goal.
In the final quarter of 2018, the average payoff amount for retrieving files encrypted in ransomware attacks was holding steady around $10,000. Early in 2019, the number began to rise, and only six months later it had quadrupled at $40,000. In 2019’s final quarter, the average amount was $84,116, and as if to warn that this number wasn’t going to drop anytime soon, the month of December saw the average rise to an unprecedented and shocking $190,000.
Much as we all wish they would, cyber criminals are not sitting on their hands. While these groups and individuals are anything but admirable, we could stand to learn a few things from them in terms of creative innovation, adaptability, persistence, and patient commitment to goals. Our posture, while defensive, must be no less active and intentional than theirs, or we will inevitably fall behind and leave our organizations open to attack.
This new year, Strategic Treasurer is challenging everyone – itself as well as others – to “go strategic,” but the phrase is more than a clever play on the company name. So, what do we mean by it?
This series within The Treasury Update Podcast features interviews with treasury experts about their expectations, projections, and predictions for the year ahead.