Ransomware is no longer just a problem for big enterprises. According to the Canadian Centre for Cyber Security, attacks on Canadian small and medium businesses have increased dramatically over the past few years — and the average cost to recover (including downtime, data loss, and remediation) routinely exceeds $200,000 per incident.
For a 20-person business in Langley, that’s an existential threat. Here’s how to actually defend against it.
How ransomware actually gets in
Ransomware doesn’t magically appear. It enters your business in one of three ways:
- Email phishing — an employee clicks a link or opens an attachment that installs malware
- Compromised credentials — an attacker logs in to a system using credentials harvested from a previous data breach
- Unpatched software — an attacker exploits a known vulnerability in software your business is running
Defending against ransomware means closing all three doors.
The five-layer defense for small businesses
Layer 1: Endpoint Detection & Response (EDR)
Traditional antivirus is necessary but not sufficient anymore. Modern EDR solutions (CrowdStrike, SentinelOne, Microsoft Defender for Business) actively monitor for suspicious behavior, isolate compromised devices, and roll back malicious changes. Cost: typically $10–$15/user/month.
Layer 2: Multi-Factor Authentication (MFA) on everything
If a single setting could prevent the most ransomware infections, it’s MFA on every email account, every cloud service, and every remote-access tool. It blocks 99% of credential-based attacks. Cost: usually free with your existing Microsoft 365 or Google Workspace subscription.
Layer 3: Email security with link rewriting
Standard email filters miss too many phishing emails. Modern email security (Microsoft Defender for Office 365, Proofpoint, Avanan) rewrites URLs so they’re scanned at click-time, sandboxes attachments, and detects business email compromise attempts. Cost: $5–$10/user/month.
Layer 4: Tested, immutable backups
Backups that ransomware can encrypt aren’t backups. You need backups that are:
- Stored separately from your production environment (preferably offsite/cloud)
- Immutable (cannot be deleted or encrypted by an attacker)
- Tested at least quarterly with full restoration
If your backup hasn’t been tested, you don’t actually know if it works.
Layer 5: Security awareness training
Every employee in your business is part of your defense. Phishing simulation tools like KnowBe4 send fake phishing emails to your team, score how they respond, and provide training when someone clicks. Done quarterly, this dramatically reduces your phishing risk.
What this looks like for a 20-person business
For a 20-person Langley business, deploying all five layers typically costs $15–$25 per user per month, plus an upfront setup of $2,000–$5,000. That’s roughly $5,000–$8,000/year ongoing — or about 2.5% of the average ransomware incident cost.
If you’ve already been hit
If you’re actively dealing with a ransomware incident, do not pay the ransom (most ransomware operators don’t actually decrypt the data after payment). Disconnect affected systems from the network, contact your IT provider or a specialized incident response firm, and report the incident to the Canadian Centre for Cyber Security.
If you’d like a ransomware-readiness assessment for your business, we offer a free 30-minute consultation. We’ll review your current defenses and identify your highest-risk gaps.
