I Wake Up and the Website Is Gone! Plan B!

 

Did a new homepage replace yours overnight? Self-styled hackers, crackers and lamers, the many “web bullies”, enjoy blocking other people's sites and replacing the main page with a souvenir of their own. The reasons can vary: fraud, spite, or even the wish of our “friend” to show off his computer skills.

There is only one answer: prepare in time.

The damage can be very serious: lost sales, blocked business and a trust relationship with customers, built with effort, that may be compromised. Even the most important and protected sites are sometimes breached, it is true, but not all hackers or crackers are computer geniuses. Prevention is better than cure, and sometimes a timely audit by professionals can save us many headaches.

If the damage is done, however, to respond to an attack we must follow three watchwords: restore, recover, reassure:

• Could the server be compromised? First move to a backup server, restoring normal operations as soon as possible from a safe backup and changing every password;
• Were the site and database damaged? Never restore files and data directly online. Copy them for later analysis and rebuild orders from the emails we received;
• Has our image with customers been damaged? There is nothing to be ashamed of in suffering a cyberattack. What matters is informing everyone as soon as possible and ensuring a quick return to normal.

Have you ever suffered a cyberattack, or do you know someone who has? And if it happened to you, do you think you would be ready to respond quickly?