Just yesterday, news broke<\/a> that WannaCry infected a Honda plant in Japan. \u00a0Today, traffic lights in Australia<\/a> are on the fritz. \u00a0How is it that WannaCry is still successful? \u00a0Every single antivirus (AV) program should<\/em>\u00a0have it on their blacklist, or list of known threats, by now. \u00a0So, what’s the deal? \u00a0Even if these companies have not updated their operating systems, if they have a legitimate security program, they should not be infected with this ransomware. \u00a0There are only three explanations,<\/p>\n First, if an organization has a security solution, which they all should, they need to ensure it is updated. \u00a0If the AV is not updated, it will not be able to block the latest security threats, such as WannaCry. \u00a0Second, it is encouraged businesses of all shapes and sizes upgrade their AV programs to a solution<\/a> that includes application whitelisting<\/a> technology. \u00a0Security programs that use whitelisting as their primary method of malware detection, are far more effective in preventing malware infections<\/a>, including ransomware. \u00a0The increased prevention is due to the concept of “default deny” within the whitelist. \u00a0The whitelist will only allow for known, trusted programs to execute. \u00a0If the program or file has not been tested and deemed safe, it is blocked until appropriate testing can be completed.<\/p>\n Ransomware has hit hospitals, government agencies, public municipalities, churches, educational institutions, as well as home users. \u00a0No one is immune from being a target. \u00a0However, everyone can prevent being a victim.<\/p>\n To see a full list of ransomware attacks that have taken place in 2017, you can click here<\/a>. We have also created a ransomware map, see below, of the ransomware attacks that have taken place in the U.S.\n
Think You’re Immune?<\/h3>\n
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