Today, ransomware is a reality for all organizations. The important thing is not when they face an attack, but how they recover when it occurs. However, despite this inevitability, many organizations continue to fight for recovery. According to the report From Risk to Resilience: Veeam 2025 Ransomware Trends and Proactive Strategies Reporthe 57% of organizations that suffered an attack last year recovered less than half of their data.
The magnitude of threats is clear, and organizations are on the path of resilience through the development of response manuals, investment in backup tools and the awareness of their equipment. However, prior confidence in attack does not always coincide with reality, since 69% of companies believe they are prepared for a ransomware attack before it occurs, and only 10% have been able to recover more than 90% of their data.
This is due to the lack of specific steps focused on recovery within the cybersecurity manuals of most organizations, such as the verification of the integrity of backup copies, the definition of recovery time objectives or the preparation of safe environments.
Being prepared is more than a plan
Ransomware attackers subtract more and more data before encrypting the systems. This increases the pressure to pay bailouts, since data leakage can cause damage to both regulation and reputation. These attacks are increasingly fast, and sometimes occur in a matter of hours, after the initial attack occurs.
While large companies remain the objective, small and medium -sized, often with less defense layers and recovery strategies that have been proven to a lesser extent, they are becoming the main objectives of cyber -cyberkers. In fact, in the first quarter of 2025, the average size of an attacked organization was only 228 employees, which further underlines this vulnerability. These organizations must challenge the Statu Quo and rethink their cybercraft approach.
Having an response plan to paper ransomware is not the same as being prepared. Many organizations believe they are, but they have not verified if their backups are isolated, if their recovery time objectives are realistic or if they have access to a safe infrastructure in case of emergency.
Actually, while 98% of organizations claim to have an action manual against ransomware, only 44% have verified their basic technical capabilities and only 32% have an isolation plan. True preparation means periodically testing these assumptions and identifying the technical or operational insufficiencies that could delay recovery
Treating recovery as a priority instead of an approach is one of the most effective steps that an organization can give. However, Proactive recovery planning also requires the implication of the budget and executives.
Many organizations do not invest enough in recovery capabilities until after suffering an attack. Including recovery in annual planning cycles, together with investments in detection and response, can help transform reactive thinking into a proactive one. Over time, this creates the necessary resilience for organizations to recover and resume their operations with a limited inactivity time, regardless of whether an attack or interruption occurs.
Invest, communicate and collaborate
Beyond having a plan itself, An infallible recovery requires continuous investmentan agile communication and a closer collaboration between the teams. The recovery does not end with the restoration of online systems.
The leading organizations reevaluate and reinvest their recovery capacity, including employee training, patches application, access controls and the structure of their recovery environments. Many are adopting more flexible solutions, such as cloud backs and managed recovery services.
It is essential to have clear leadership and decision -making structures. During a crisis, confusion slows recovery. Having a document chain and a documented communication chain helps the equipment to act rapidly, it is already a matter of requesting external help, notifying the regulatory agencies or managing communications with customers. The teams that are preparing for these decisions, have more confidence and are more effective when it matters more.
The collaboration is equally criticism of recovery and preparation, especially among IT and Security Operations Teams. When these teams work in synchrony, they can detect threats before, respond faster and recover with less interruptions. However, more than half of organizations still have alignment problems. Investing in coordination between these equipment can accelerate recovery and reduce the risk of exposure.
Recovery is a business problem, not just a task
A common error is to assume that ransomware alone causes income losses or loss of customers. What makes the difference is how organizations respond to an attack. The inactivity time, the loss of data and the unconnected efforts of recovery are those that stop income, move away customers and damage the credibility of the brand.
A solid recovery strategy should be considered an essential part of the planning of the company’s continuity. This includes maintaining verified and offline backups and preparing the infrastructure necessary to quickly restore critical systems.
Insurance recovery environments and isolated backups are not mere technical safeguards, but facilitate business continuity during a crisis. These elements can reduce the impact of an attack and help the organization return to normal more quickly.
A faster recovery equals a stronger business
To really reduce the impact of ransomware, Recovery must become an organizational priority, not only in a function of IT or security. This means regularly testing recovery plans through simulations; Define leadership functions for decision -making during an attack; Treat workers awareness as a first -line defense, not as a compliance verification box; And finally, audit and verify backups as part of a living and repetitive process.
Cybercriminals adapt quickly. Recovery strategies should evolve even faster. In a crisis, the recovery speed makes a difference. Organizations that are again operational not only avoid greater losses, but show their customers, partners and investors that are reliable and resilient.
Signed by: Rick Vanover, Vice President of Product Strategy of Veeam.
