Getting hit by ransomware and not paying anyway

You open a folder and everything looks wrong. File names are scrambled, stuff will not open, and there is that note telling you to pay. My first reaction is basically anger, then this quick math in my head. If we pay, we still might not get the files back. And we just told them it works.

So yeah, the plan is recovery without paying. Not a magic trick, more like a messy checklist you do fast. You stop the spread, figure out what got touched, bring systems back from clean backups, and then lock things down so it does not happen again. It feels like putting out a fire while also trying to remember where the water shutoff is.

Where this goes next

We are going to move in steps. First response so we do not make it worse. Containment so the infection can’t keep running around. Restoration so people can work again. Then hardening because if we skip that part, we are basically inviting round two.

Quick ending

The goal is simple. Get back to normal without sending money to criminals, and come out tougher than before.