Just last July, La Porte County fell victim to a cyber-attack. The county government paid more than $130,000 in ransom money to criminals who locked away network access in what is called a ransomware attack. Incidents like La Porte County’s are increasingly common, so it is more important than ever for businesses and organizations around the Region to stay informed and on top of their security.
BucherTech, an IT and networking firm based in Valparaiso, protects its clients against those attacks on a daily basis. On Friday, they hosted a Lunch and Learn session at Valparaiso Country Club, inviting their clients to hear the latest updates on cybersecurity, how they are protected, and what the risks are if those safeguards were gone.
“We want our clients to understand the realities about their security needs on the internet,” said Tim Bucher, President and Owner of BucherTech. “When I first got into the IT industry, security wasn’t that big of a deal. But now, we’re seeing people getting hacked every day. Just last week, one of the Shark Tank hosts lost $388,700 in an attack. It’s essential to update our security.”
Bucher was referring to entrepreneur and Shark Tank host Barbara Corcoran, who managed to recover her money after a bank caught on to the incident and stopped the scammers from depositing the money into a Chinese bank account. Corcoran’s case, and that of La Porte County, accounted for the nearly $60 million in losses reported to the FBI last year. But it’s not just businesses who are at risk.
“We’re getting schools in Indiana that are hit with ransomware. They’re being held hostage and are being told they need to pay $50,000, or they don’t get their records back” said Eric Schoenfeld, Channel Account Manager for Fortinet, the third-largest cybersecurity company in the world. “We’ve seen that in four to six different school districts in Indiana.”
Fortinet develops network security solutions and partners with local firms like BucherTech who use those solutions to protect their clients. BucherTech invited them out to lead the Lunch and Learn session.
“BucherTech is a perfect partner,” Schoenfeld said. “They understand all the different types of businesses and communities here in Northwest Indiana. They know how to spot an attack and get your situation resolved right away.”
BucherTech protects all kinds of organizations and professionals such as local governments, physicians, charitable foundations, and insurance agencies. Heather Minard, Technology Manager for Anton Insurance, said BucherTech has kept her place of work secure for more than10 years.
“We’re absolutely confident in the service they provide, and they’re always responsive and easy to work with,” Minard said. “Having an educational session like this is so important in this day and age. Technology is a way of life, and you need to stay informed to protect that.”
To learn more about BucherTech and its network security solutions, visit buchertech.com.
