By Mandy Duncan, Country Manager for HPE Aruba Networking South Africa

Ransomware is becoming a major headache for businesses in South Africa. Recent research from Interpol shows that, on average, cyberattacks on organisations across Africa have surged by 23% year-on-year, with ransomware quickly becoming one of the most prevalent threats.

Dealing with ransomware effectively often means using a mix of security solutions. However, if these solutions aren’t well-coordinated, it can lead to complexity, inconsistencies, and gaps in security. This makes it harder for teams to carry out the essential functions needed to guard against ransomware threats.

Resources such as the National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) Cybersecurity Framework (CSF) 2.0 can help businesses reduce cybersecurity risk as it outlines six key functions, acting as a guide for organisations aiming to bolster their defenses.

Given this context, AI-powered networking solutions can play a pivotal role. They form an essential first layer of defense against ransomware by enabling multiple functions of the NIST framework, thus providing a comprehensive approach to network security.

Here are some key steps on how businesses can more effectively defend themselves from ransomware attacks by strengthening their network security.

1. Govern

Global policy capabilities within security-first, AI-powered networking can help teams set and enforce security policies based on the needs of the business, as well as the identities of users, devices, and applications. These policies apply across the entire organisation, making it easier to manage access controls without needing to individually update every device.

2. Identify

When it comes to protecting against ransomware, it's crucial to identify where the risks are coming from. It's not just the users; the IoT devices connected to company networks can be significant threats too. Security-first, AI-powered networking leverages AI and machine learning to help security teams enhance their protection and mitigate the risks posed by these devices.

These advanced AI capabilities can make a significant difference when it comes to protection against IoT risks. By examining how devices behave on the network, such as their traffic patterns and connection status, the system can accurately identify and categorise IoT devices. This kind of analysis helps to spot any unusual activity early on, giving teams the chance to tackle potential threats before they escalate.

3. Protect

Effective networking solutions should include tools that protect the network from potential threats such as ransomware. Tools like wireless intrusion detection and prevention systems and rogue access point intrusion detection systems, for example, help security teams quickly identify, investigate, and manage any suspicious devices.

In a zero-trust environment, it’s crucial to enforce least-privilege access so that if a device gets compromised, it can’t access corporate resources or communicate with external ransomware sites. This also stops attacks from spreading laterally. Tools such as HPE Aruba Networking’s edge devices act as policy enforcement firewalls and intrusion protection systems. They inspect network traffic and apply least-privilege access policies, ensuring a tighter grip on security.

By adopting unified configuration models with an API-first approach, businesses can create custom tools, giving them more flexibility and control as they manage their access points, switches and gateways. This means organisations of any size can quickly make configuration changes, whether it's small tweaks or large updates, saving both time and effort no matter how complex the network.

4. Detect

To catch potential threats before they escalate, organisations need early and reliable warning signs. This is exactly where strong networking security solutions come in handy.

Platforms like HPE Aruba Networking Central use behavioral analytics to keep an eye on network activities. By leveraging data from millions of devices, their AI models can spot unusual activity in IoT devices.

Additionally, continuous scans for harmful activities using advanced threat detection tools help quickly identifying suspicious activities and data packets. This allows security teams to react instantly, block harmful data and prevent threats in real time.

5. Respond

While tackling ransomware involves a variety of strategies, most experts agree that blending proactive and reactive measures works best, following a multi-layered, multi-pronged approach. On the proactive side, it could mean securing storage devices to prevent ransomware attacks based on your network's signals. On the reactive side, it could involve setting up network access policies to restrict, deny, or allow devices on the network according to information from the security system.

6. Recover

A clear resilience strategy with continuous data protection is crucial when it comes to fighting ransomware and bouncing back from attacks. It allows organisations to effectively manage, protect, recover, and transfer data and applications, whether they're on-site or in the cloud. Drawing on a comprehensive network security solution, teams can pinpoint when an attack was initiated and recover data to a point in time just prior to infection.

Strengthening network security is the first line of defense against ransomware. With advanced tools like HPE Aruba Networking Central, it’s possible to spot threats early, respond effectively, and recover quickly. It's not just about protecting the network; it's about ensuring the entire organisation stays resilient. Ultimately, the integration of these proactive and reactive measures ensures a comprehensive defense strategy, equipping organisations to not only face current threats but also adapt to emerging ones with confidence.