Six Ways We Shield Your Business from Ransomware in 2025

Posted on by Alisanne Steele

Alisanne Steele | Rabbit Hole Technology | blog |@RabbitHoleIT

The Threat Landscape Has Evolved—So Have We

Your business is more connected than ever. You rely on cloud platforms, mobile devices, remote collaboration tools, and digital workflows to drive productivity. But with that connectivity comes a growing cyber threat: ransomware.

Cybercriminals are increasingly targeting small to mid-sized businesses—especially those without comprehensive protection. In 2024 alone, ransomware attacks cost businesses an estimated $20 billion globally, with average ransom demands exceeding $800,000.

And while ransomware remains a top threat, attackers are becoming faster, stealthier, and more persistent. That’s why we’ve built a sustainable, repeatable six-layer security strategy to protect your business from infection, data loss, and disruption.

🔍 Why Your Business Is a Target

  • 74% of organizations support or plan to support BYOD
  • Only 25% of laptops are backed up regularly
  • 60 million computers will fail this year
  • Ransomware spreads through phishing, software flaws, and unsecured devices

The rise of remote work and employee-owned devices opens new doors for attackers. Every endpoint, outdated app, or untrained user becomes a vulnerability.

🛡️ Our Six-Layered Approach to Ransomware Protection

We deploy a multi-layered defense strategy built to adapt to evolving threats. Our partnerships with Datto, Sophos, and KnowBe4 ensure industry-leading protection and training.

1. Patching & Vulnerability Management

We apply the latest security patches to operating systems and apps to close known vulnerabilities before attackers can exploit them.

2. Advanced Antivirus & Threat Detection

Real-time antivirus and threat detection systems monitor files and traffic across your network, blocking viruses, spyware, and suspicious activity.

3. Backup & Disaster Recovery (BDR)

We conduct full-system backups for critical infrastructure, allowing rapid recovery even in the event of a full ransomware lockout.

4. Endpoint Backup

Business data created on laptops, phones, and tablets is protected with real-time backup—no matter where it’s accessed or stored.

5. Secure File Sync & Collaboration

We deploy enterprise-grade file sync tools so your team can collaborate securely, with full control over document access, sharing, and recovery.

6. User Education & Awareness

With KnowBe4 training, your staff learns how to recognize phishing scams, suspicious links, and social engineering tactics—before they click.

📈 The Rising Cost of Inaction

From Google Docs phishing scams to WannaCry variants infecting thousands of machines per hour, ransomware is growing more aggressive and expensive.

Without the right protections, businesses face:

  • Extended downtime
  • Permanent data loss
  • Regulatory penalties
  • Reputational damage

✅ We Help You Stay Ahead of the Threat

Our six-layered cybersecurity approach is designed to keep your business running—securely, confidently, and resiliently.

📞 Contact us today to schedule a security assessment or request your free BYOD Policy Template and Ransomware Readiness Checklist.

Stay safe, stay secure,
~Alisanne Steele
Rabbit Hole Technology | TheSoftwareConsultant

🧠 Sources

ZDNet – “74% of organizations adopting BYOD” | Cybersecurity Ventures – Ransomware damage estimates | Sophos – State of Ransomware 2024 | World Backup Day – Data loss awareness | KnowBe4 – Cybersecurity training impact reports

Breaking Down PhishingBreaking Down Phishing in 2025: Why It’s Still Cybersecurity’s Top ThreatBreaking Down Phishing

Posted on by Alisanne Steele

Alisanne Steele | Rabbit Hole Technology | Friday, June 29, 2018 | blog

🧠 What Is Phishing?

Phishing is a form of cybercrime where attackers impersonate trusted sources—like banks, healthcare providers, or even your CEO—to trick users into revealing sensitive information.

These attacks often mimic real emails, login pages, or forms, and they’ve grown increasingly convincing with the help of AI-driven content and Phishing-as-a-Service (PhaaS).

📈 Phishing in 2025: Key Stats

  • 94% of successful cyberattacks start with a phishing email

  • 4.7 million+ phishing websites are created monthly

  • 83% of businesses were phished last year

  • 45% of phishing emails get opened

  • 10%+ of users click links or download attachments

  • Many attacks now involve AI-generated emails and fake brand sites

🎯 Why Phishing Still Works

✅ Volume

Millions of phishing messages are sent daily. One wrong click is all it takes.

✅ Authenticity

Today’s phishing emails mirror real ones, making detection difficult.

✅ Low Barrier to Entry

Anyone can launch a phishing campaign using online kits—no tech skills required.

✅ Big Profits

Phishing leads to identity theft, fraud, and ransomware. It’s fast and lucrative.

🧨 The Ransomware Connection

Phishing is the #1 delivery method for ransomware.

Sectors like healthcare, education, and small business are especially vulnerable due to:

  • Lack of backups

  • Minimal cybersecurity policies

  • Limited IT resources

🛡️ How Rabbit Hole Technology Protects You

We use a multi-layered defense approach, including:

  • 🔐 Advanced email filtering

  • 🧠 KnowBe4 phishing awareness training

  • 🔑 Multi-factor authentication (MFA)

  • 🛡️ Endpoint protection

  • 💾 Encrypted, off-site backups

Let’s run a phishing simulation, test your response, and fortify your weakest links—your inboxes.

🤝 Need Help?

Phishing is constant, but so are we.

📞 Contact Rabbit Hole Technology to secure your team and data.

Stay alert, stay secure,
~Alisanne Steele
Rabbit Hole Technology | TheSoftwareConsultant

How to Spot a Phishing Attack

Posted on by Alisanne Steele

Alisanne Steele | Rabbit Hole Technology | Friday, June 15, 2018 | blog

Would you know if you were the subject of a phishing attack? Many people claim that they’d be able to tell right away if they received an email from an illegitimate source. If that were the case, there wouldn’t be 1.5 million new phishing sites every month, a 65% increase in attacks in the last year, and hackers would have moved on to their next idea for swindling people out of their identities and money.  How do you spot a phishing attack and avoid falling victim yourself? Look for these red flags:

 

  1. Sender Email Address:Always check to make sure that the email address is legitimate. Amateur hackers will send things from Gmail or Hotmail accounts and hope you don’t notice. More sophisticated hackers will closely mimic an actual email domain, like amazonprime.com rather than amazon.com. Double check the email address before responding, clicking, or opening, even if the from name appears correct.
  2. Discrepancies in Writing Format: If the attack is coming from overseas, you’re likely to notice some small issues in writing format, like writing a date as 4thApril, 2018 rather than April 4, 2018. While this is subtle, it should be a red flag.
  3. Grammar Issues: We all fall victim to the occasional typo, but if you receive an email riddled with grammar and spelling mistakes, consider the source. It’s likely a hacker, especially if the email supposedly comes from a major organization.
  4. Sender Name: This one is also difficult to track, but phishing emails will typically close with a very generic name to avoid raising suspicion. You should recognize the people that send you emails, or at the very least, clearly understand their role at the organization.
  5. Link Destination:Before you click on any link in an email, hover over it. The destination URL should pop up. Check out the domain name of this URL. Similar to the sender email address, make sure that this address is legitimate before clicking.
  6. Attachments:Is it realistic to expect an attachment from this sender? Rule of thumb, don’t open any attachment you don’t expect to receive, whether it’s a Zip file, PDF or otherwise. The payload for a ransomware attack often hides inside.
  7. Email Design:A cooky font like Comic Sans should immediately raise red flags if you don’t clearly recognize the sender.
  8. Links to Verify Information:Never, ever click on a link to verify information. Instead, if you think the information does need updating, go directly to the website. Type in your email and password, and update your information from the Account tab. Always go directly to the source.
  9. Odd Logo Use: Hackers try their best to mimic the site’s look and feel. Oftentimes, they get very close; but they won’t be perfect. If something feels off, it probably is.

 

While there is no fool-proof method for avoiding falling victim to a phishing attack, knowing how to spot likely culprits is one step in the right direction. We’ll cover other protective measures to reduce your risk of falling victim to phishing attacks [insert link to blog] in our next blog.

 

As always, we are here to help!

Alisanne Steele | Rabbit Hole Technology

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Phishing | Fixing Your Weakest Link: Employees

Posted on by Alisanne Steele

Alisanne Steele | Rabbit Hole Technology | Saturday, July 1, 2018 | blog

You can have every piece of security hardware in the books: firewall, backup disaster recovery device, anti-virus; but your employees will still be the biggest vulnerability in your organization when it comes to phishing attacks. How do you mitigate as much risk as possible?

  1. Create and Strictly Enforce a Password Policy: Passwords should be complex, randomly generated, and replaced regularly. In order to test the strength of your password go to this site. (This is a perfectly safe service sponsored by a password protection platform that tells you how long it would take a hacker to decode your password.) When creating a password policy, bear in mind that the most prevalent attacks are Dictionary attacks. Most people utilize real words for their passwords. Hackers will typically try all words before trying a brute force attack. Instead of words, use a combination of letters, numbers, and symbols. The longer the password, the stronger it is. While it’s difficult to remember passwords across different platforms, try not to repeat passwords. This will protect all other accounts in the event of a breach on one of your accounts.
  2. Train and Test Your Employees Regularly: Educate your employees on how they can spot a phishing attack [insert link to blog 2]. Then, utilize penetration testing (a safe phishing attack orchestrated by your IT company to see how employees respond) to see how well they do. If employees fall for phishing attempts, send them through training again. We recommend doing this on a quarterly basis to ensure that your employees stay on their toes, and you always provide education on the latest attacks.
  3. Create a Bring Your Own Device Policy and Protect all Mobile Phones: You can safeguard as much as humanly possible on your network, but your employees are all walking in with a cell phone. Are they allowed to get emails on these phones? What about gaining access to the network remotely? Cell phones create a big black hole in security without proper mobile device management and mobile security.
  4. Perform Software Updates Regularly: Make sure that your software is up-to-date with all the latest security patches. Holding off on updates means that you’re leaving yourself open to vulnerabilities that have been discovered and addressed.
  5. Invest in Security: Security is not something for cost savings. Home-based hardware is not sufficient, and you at the very least need a quality firewall and backup device. Invest in your employee’s training, ongoing security updates, and maintaining a full crisis/breach plan.

 

There are two things that aren’t going away in any business, employees and security threats. Make sure that you’ve taken care of everything you can to avoid falling victim.

 

As always, we are here to help!