There are already several ransomware simulators on the market. However, these are aimed at IT or cyber security experts. The Ransom Check tool from the security consulting firm Secuvera takes a different approach. Here, less IT-savvy people should also be able to test themselves. The speech is kept correspondingly simple. For experts, however, there is little that is new in terms of content.
The tests themselves are in a ZIP file and can be used without entering any data be downloaded. The main gateways for cyber blackmail are checked: executable files, Excel and Word macros. The tests last around five minutes. In addition, a simple checklist is also offered, which further measures help to protect against ransomware.
This low-threshold offering is certainly a different approach than many common ransomware tools. It remains to be seen whether decision-makers actually carry out such tests themselves. It should be helpful in many cases, because experience has shown that in many environments there is no application whitelisting or restrictions on macros.
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