Ransomware Readiness: Tips from Beyond the Playbook

The call came at 2 AM. A major U.S. telecom provider, critical infrastructure supporting millions of cell phone users, was under active ransomware attack. Systems were encrypting rapidly across their network. Within hours, the FBI was coordinating response efforts, executives were in crisis mode, and a specialized team was rebuilding Active Directory from scratch while the clock ticked. For Eric Pittman, VP of Cybersecurity at Teradata, this wasn't a tabletop exercise or theoretical scenario. It was a real-world crisis that revealed critical gaps in how organizations prepare for and respond to ransomware attacks.

The insights from this incident offer valuable lessons for any organization looking to strengthen their ransomware defenses before they face a similar crisis. The lessons learned from those intense days offer a blueprint for building true ransomware resilience.

Inside a Real-World Ransomware Crisis

When the attack hit, the telecom provider faced an immediate cascade of failures that extended far beyond IT systems:

• Communication breakdown: Primary channels went dark, hampering coordination
• Decision paralysis: Leadership scrambled between technical recovery and business