Another day, another devastating cyberattack—one that serves as a brutal reminder of the cybersecurity risks businesses face.

A 158-year-old company, Knights of Old (1865–2023)—great name, tragic ending—was completely wiped out by a single ransomware attack.

The aftermath?

Files encrypted
Financial systems wrecked
700 employees out of work
A $100-million-a-year business reduced to a statistic

They refused to pay the ransom, knowing there were no guarantees they'd get their data back even if they did. Instead, they turned to their backups—only to discover the attackers had destroyed those too. This is one of the most common and catastrophic attack vectors.

And how did the hackers get in? Brute-force password guessing. No zero-days. No nation-state-level tactics. Just poor security hygiene and a lack of detection and response.

Even with a $1 million cyber insurance policy, there was no coming back. Cyber insurance is not a silver bullet. It won't save a business that's lost everything.

Think this won't happen to you? It will. This keeps me up at night, and it should do the same for you. These aren't just startups running on a shoestring budget—many of the victims are well-established companies with extensive operations, long-standing partnerships, and deep industry roots.

The lesson?

Weak passwords and poor security fundamentals can still bring down giants. Brute-force attacks aren't sophisticated, but without strong detection, response, and secure backups, they're still devastating.

Your backups are your company's lifeline in a ransomware attack. And if they're not properly protected, they're worthless.

At Myota, we secure backup data in a way that neutralizes all ransomware attack vectors, ensuring your data is trustworthy and accessible when you need it most. Learn more at https://Myota.io.

What are you doing to mitigate risk from the network? Let's talk.

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