Imagine for a moment that you receive a phone call from a client to hear that hundreds of their computers have been infected with ransomware, knocking critical systems offline and putting their organization’s entire operations at risk. What a nightmare, right? Unfortunately, this has been a reality for many unprepared small- and medium-sized businesses (SMBs) as we’ve seen ransomware reach new levels of maturity over the past couple of years.

Ransomware attacks can have a major impact on business continuity, productivity, reputation and much more, and dealing with one is not only time-consuming; it can be extremely costly. SMBs need to be fully aware of the threat posed by ransomware and make strengthening their IT defenses a top priority this year. However, if they’re hesitant or don’t yet have the proper defenses in place, how can you convince them to turn to an MSP like you for help? What other financial impacts could ransomware have on their business and why should they leverage your managed IT services to prevent a business-crippling attack?

Your clients may not be completely aware of ransomware’s threats, so as their MSP you need to keep them educated. On the prospect side, the rise in the cost of ransomware attacks presents yet another opportunity to pitch your managed IT services as their protective solution. To help you get these conversations started, we’ve gathered data from Symantec’s Ransomware and Businesses 2016 report that you can use with the additional talking points below.

See chart and original article here.

Author: Lily Teplow, Continuum