Cyberattacks have become big business from the standpoint of attackers. Threat actors range well beyond cults of old, and now including sophisticated state actors, large businesses organized for the very purpose of cyber breach and theft, and complex threat networks that aggregate information formerly treated as innocuous. This is a real risk for companies as we look forward to the remainder of 2021. At the same time, ransomware is changing the state of cyber insurance, with regulators across the globe entering the field to govern the conduct of attacked businesses in this climate. Regulations cover terms of ransom payments and subsequent obligations to persons whose information goes out the pipes. For more on these risks, you can listen to the recent Nota Bene podcast episode (on Apple Podcasts, Google Podcasts, Spotify, or Stitcher) with Sheppard Mullin partners Kari Rollins and Michael Cohen.

Putting it Into Practice: With this landscape, companies should take care to examine the state of their existing information security posture and preparedness, test systems vulnerabilities, and audit cybersecurity compliance to mitigate the ever-expanding cybersecurity risks and potential liability to any global or domestic business organization.