Disconnected: What Happens When a Virus Shuts Down Your Entire Network?

AdobeStock_187532707 (1)The threat of cyber attacks have become one of the biggest concerns for business owners. The mere threat of their network being compromised has made many people paranoid over emails and other easily compromised data.

While some hacks are relatively harmless, in that only data and money might be stolen, some hacks and even some viruses are extremely destructive to the point of shutting down an entire company. One virus, the Emotet virus has proven to be extremely problematic. This virus has been shown to be a self-replicating virus in which normal scans and normal purges aren’t able to remove. This comes from the fact that it targets computer endpoints, the point where an IP address enters the internet and something that most virus scans can’t pick up.[1]

With a virus that can’t be easily purged, companies are forced to quarantine computers to isolate it from their network. One company that was hit with this virus had 20 laptops infected, most of them sales representatives and directors. With no way to adequately clean it, these 20 computers were put into quarantine, effectively sending these people home until they could figure out how to free their computers or barring that renting out new computers. Their coverage was able to cover them for the loss of production and potential renters’ fees, but most policies may not have a coverage for shutting down of an entire server.

 An entire server shutting down might be crippling or irrecoverable to the company’s fortunes and bottom line. Even with the best cyber coverage and best security, if your network goes down, you may as well be out of business.

 

[1] https://www.symantec.com/blogs/threat-intelligence/evolution-emotet-trojan-distributor