Which option is a basic mitigation for ransomware?

Which option is a basic mitigation for ransomware?

• A. Strong password policy
• B. Backups and least privilege
• C. Phishing training
• D. Encryption only

Answer: (B)

Ransomware defense hinges on being able to recover quickly and limit what an attacker can do. The most practical basic mitigation is to have reliable backups and enforce least privilege. Backups give you clean copies of your data that you can restore after an attack, reducing downtime and removing the need to pay ransom. To be effective, backups should be recent, protected from tampering (offline or immutable), and regularly tested so you know you can actually restore when needed. Enforcing least privilege means users and services run with only the permissions they truly need, which curtails how much data ransomware can access or encrypt and helps contain any breach to a smaller portion of the network. Together, they address both recovery and containment in a straightforward, foundational way. Other measures help reduce risk in different ways, but they don’t address recovery and containment as directly. A strong password policy decreases the chance of credential misuse, phishing training lowers the likelihood of initial compromise, and encryption alone doesn’t prevent ransomware activity or guarantee recoverability.

Ransomware defense hinges on being able to recover quickly and limit what an attacker can do. The most practical basic mitigation is to have reliable backups and enforce least privilege. Backups give you clean copies of your data that you can restore after an attack, reducing downtime and removing the need to pay ransom. To be effective, backups should be recent, protected from tampering (offline or immutable), and regularly tested so you know you can actually restore when needed. Enforcing least privilege means users and services run with only the permissions they truly need, which curtails how much data ransomware can access or encrypt and helps contain any breach to a smaller portion of the network. Together, they address both recovery and containment in a straightforward, foundational way.

Other measures help reduce risk in different ways, but they don’t address recovery and containment as directly. A strong password policy decreases the chance of credential misuse, phishing training lowers the likelihood of initial compromise, and encryption alone doesn’t prevent ransomware activity or guarantee recoverability.