HOW TO PROTECT YOUR BUSINESS FROM THE “BACKOFF” MALWARE THAT CONTINUES TO BREACH COMPANIES ACROSS THE US

The now infamous 2013 Target breach –in which more than 70 million customers’ credit and debit card information were stolen – is one of the biggest data breaches to occur in the US. However with the continued momentum of the “Backoff” point-of-sale malware among American businesses, will it maintain that title for long?

On Tuesday, Home Depot confirmed that it is investigating unusual banking activity that may indicate another breach that could be even larger than Target’s. This follows on the heels of The UPS Store’s August announcement that it had been breached. And these two businesses are not the only ones scrambling in the wake of the “Backoff” threat – the New York Times reported that more than 1,000 American businesses have been affected by this point-of-sale malware, including Supervalu, Sally Beauty and Dairy Queen.

Affecting small and medium-sized businesses, as well as these well-known retailer giants, data breaches aren’t just a threat to your customers – they threaten your business’s reputation for providing trustworthy service, which in turn affects your sales and stock prices. Target has reportedly lost more than $100 million – and its CEO – following its data breach.

So what exactly is “Backoff” malware, and how can you ensure your business is protected from this growing threat?

According to the United States Computer Emergency Readiness Team, “Backoff” malware gains access to a company’s point-of-sale system via forced entry through remote desktop solutions. Also known as “RAM scraper” malware, it is designed to then copy credit and debit card data when the data is briefly stored in the random access memory, or RAM, of the back-end server that processes payment transactions. The stolen data is transmitted from there to hackers who resell the card data in online forums.

To protect yourself from this type of malware, you need to work with your technology provider to integrate a best-fit, proactive anti-malware solution into your system.

Blue Technologies Smart Solutions utilizes Blue Protect, a proactive managed IT solution installed on your entire printer fleet to protect your business from various types of malware attacks, among other threats. Regular system monitoring and performance reviews ensure your sensitive and restricted data stays private, while backups ensure critical data is never lost.

Our Blue Protect icon on every computer gives your staff a suite of easy, do-it-yourself maintenance tools, backed by our reliable US-based service desk support and 5-point Commitment To Excellence performance pledge guarantee.

As malware and its threat to data security continues to make headlines, you can’t afford to leave your business – and customers – unprotected. Email us today at info@btohio.com or call (216) 271-4800 to learn more about the “Backoff” malware threat and a preventative data security solution to protect your business.

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