Kaspersky Lab offers free anti-ransomware tool for Windows
Kaspersky want to help SMBs combat the threat of ransomware. (Image: ZDNet)
There's been a surge in hackers targeting organizations with ransomware, keen to squeeze cash or bitcoins out of infected targets who often feel they have no chance but to cooperate with fraudsters' demands.
For smaller businesses in particular, a ransomware attack can be a huge headache. But now security firm Kaspersky Lab is offering a free tool to enable businesses infected by cryptomalware or ransomware to regain access to data on Microsoft Windows devices -- the only operating system the tool currently works with -- without the need to pay hackers the ransom they demand.
"Small and medium-sized companies do not usually have the profound security expertise required to evaluate or compare dozens of security tools on the market. Kaspersky Anti-Ransomware Tool for Business is compatible with third-party security solutions and is a complementary measure against ransomware," said Konstantin Voronkov, head of endpoint product management, Kaspersky Lab.
Kaspersky recently teamed with Intel Security, Europol, and the Dutch Police to launch No More Ransom, a free online portal which provides keys to unlocking encrypted files, as well as information on how to avoid getting infected in the first place.
Kaspersky Lab's tool combines two technologies: the cloud-based Kaspersky Security Network, which processes data of voluntarily participants across the globe, and System Watcher, a security technology that records and analyses network events, along with providing evidence of malicious activity.
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