– You don’t need to open a Telenor invoice on Gmail at work. You never know if it’s malware you’re bringing in, says IT security manager at Atea, Anita Sondresen. On Thursday, it became known that hackers are now demanding several million kroner in ransom after a computer attack against the contractor company Stangeland Maskin in Rogaland. Such computer attacks can happen if employees in a company open a link with malware on their work PC. – If one clicks on one of these links, it can have unimaginably large consequences. That is probably what has happened at Stangeland. Then the data has been encrypted, and a ransom is demanded, says Sondresen. Anita Sondresen believes that if someone clicks on a link with malware on their work PC, it could have major consequences. Photo: Odin Omland / news – Ask yourself some control questions 2021 was a peak year for data attacks against companies and organizations worldwide. The security company Check Point recorded a 50 percent increase in attempted attacks against companies worldwide compared to 2020. In the vast majority of companies that are affected by such data attacks, someone has clicked on a link with malware. This is probably also what happened at Stangeland Maskin, but how it happened is unknown. The malware therefore does not need to have entered via a private e-mail address. Now the general manager, Tommy Stangeland, is asking other business owners to be very concerned about data security. Tommy Stangeland, Stangeland Machine. Photo: Odin Omland / news – If you have not ordered a package, do not open the link that says the package has now arrived. Ask yourself some control questions first, says Stangeland. NOK 50 million lost AKVA group with headquarters at Klepp in Rogaland is the world’s largest supplier of solutions and services for aquaculture. They have offices in ten different countries around the world. In January 2021, they were the victim of a powerful computer attack where the hackers demanded a ransom from the company. The attack put their computer systems out of action for weeks. – We got our data restored, but it took six months of extra work. You can compare it to syrup in the machinery. We depend on computing power. So it took six months before everything was back to normal operation, says managing director Knut Nesse. CEO of AKVA group, Knut Nesse. The attack cost the company NOK 50 million. However, Nesse would not comment on whether they ever paid out a ransom to the hackers. After the attack, they went through all security routines, and in particular improved their backup routines and have carried out training for the employees. – But if they enter NASA, they also enter the systems of a medium-sized company on Jæren. We cannot stop intrusion, but we can do as much as we can to prevent intruders. Including having a separate backup system, says Nesse. Mandatory computer security course A year ago, the whole of Amedia also fell victim to a computer attack. For Haugesund’s Avis, this meant that all systems had to be shut down, and the paper newspaper could not be published. Photo: Thomas Halleland / news Now they are starting a mandatory data security course in several steps. This should make them more aware of what they are doing online. – What comes in via e-mail, which messages we receive. We must be able to interpret what comes in. That’s very good, because we don’t know enough about this here, says Lillian Haug Sortland, editor for paper newspaper production and debate at Haugesund’s Avis. Must train in cyber security When Stangeland Maskin discovered that they were victims of computer attacks, their own employees and subcontractors did a great job to shut them down and disconnect them. Such an attack was not something the company had trained for in the past, but Stangeland promises that this will be a new topic they practice in the future. – We will become very good at data security, he says.
ttn-69
– Don’t pay bills at work – news Rogaland – Local news, TV and radio
