{"podcast":{"title":"The Backup Wrap-Up","slug":"the-backup-wrap-up-758069","podcast_index_feed_id":758069,"rss_url":"https://feeds.captivate.fm/backupwrapup/","website_url":"https://www.backupwrapup.com","image_url":"https://artwork.captivate.fm/4670d4e3-81d6-4770-aeca-fe0331f5ce9e/IO00Uwof5u-hiUJElhkbBmKT.jpg","author":"W. Curtis Preston (Mr. Backup)","episode_count":355,"summary":"Formerly known as \"Restore it All,\" The Backup Wrap-up podcast turns unappreciated backup admins into cyber recovery heroes. After a brief analysis of backup-related news, each episode dives deep into one topic that you can use to better protect your organization from data loss, be it from accidents, disasters, or ransomware. The Backup Wrap-up is hosted by W. Curtis Preston (Mr. Backup) and his co-host Prasanna Malaiyandi. Curtis' passion for backups began over 30 years ago when his employer, a $35B bank, lost its purchasing database – and the backups he was in charge of were worthless. After miraculously not being fired, he resolved to learn everything he could about a topic most people try to get away from. His co-host, Prasanna, saw similar tragedies from the vendor side of the house and also wanted to do whatever he could to stop that from happening to others. A particular focus lately has been the scourge of ransomware that is plaguing IT organizations across the globe. That's why in addition to backup and disaster recovery, we also touch on information security techniques you can use to protect your backup systems from ransomware. If you'd like to go from being unappreciate…","last_synced_at":"2026-07-06T22:18:00.235096+00:00","page_url":"https://stenobird.com/podcast/the-backup-wrap-up-758069"},"episode":{"title":"How Ransomware Works: The Five Objectives of Every Attack","slug":"how-ransomware-works-the-five-objectives-of-every-attack","published_at":"2026-02-02T11:00:00+00:00","page_url":"https://stenobird.com/podcast/the-backup-wrap-up-758069/how-ransomware-works-the-five-objectives-of-every-attack","show_page_url":"https://stenobird.com/podcast/the-backup-wrap-up-758069","url":"https://www.backupwrapup.com/how-ransomware-works-five-objectives-every-attack","audio_url":"https://episodes.captivate.fm/episode/96bad3ea-d39a-4a05-8abc-d7714119ee62.mp3","summary":"Understanding how ransomware works is critical for anyone responsible for protecting their organization's data. In this episode of The Backup Wrap-up, we examine the five core objectives that drive nearly every ransomware attack - from initial access through the final ransom note delivery. I'm joined by my co-author Dr. Mike Saylor as we kick off what's going to be a comprehensive series on our new book, \"Learning Ransomware Response and Recovery.\" We start at the beginning: how do these attackers even get in? Mike breaks down the role of initial access brokers (IABs) - the bad guys who specialize in harvesting and selling credentials. We talk about why email phishing remains the cheapest and most statistically reliable attack vector, even with all our defenses. From there, we walk through lateral movement and reconnaissance. Once attackers are inside your network, they're not sitting idle. They're mapping your environment, identifying your crown jewels, and figuring out where your backups live. The \"phone home\" phase establishes command and control, letting attackers coordinate their activities and receive instructions. We dig into data exfiltration and the rise of double extortion. It's not enough anymore to just encrypt your data - attackers are stealing it first, threatening to publish it even if you can restore from backups. Mike shares some fascinating details about how sophisticated ransomware can be, including variants that examine file headers rather than just extensions to find valuable targets. The encryption phase itself is resource-intensive, and Mike explains why you might actually notice your computer acting weird if you're paying attention. Your mouse hesitates, typing lags, the network slows down - these are all potential warning signs. Finally, we cov…","meta_description":"Understanding how ransomware works is critical for anyone responsible for protecting their organization's data. In this episode of The Backup Wrap-up, we…","key_points":[],"chapters":[],"topics":[],"duration_seconds":2469,"processing_state":"not_requested","actions":[{"name":"request_transcript","method":"POST","url":"https://stenobird.com/v1/public/podcasts/the-backup-wrap-up-758069/episodes/how-ransomware-works-the-five-objectives-of-every-attack/transcription-requests","description":"Idempotently request low-priority transcript generation for this episode."},{"name":"read_markdown","method":"GET","url":"https://stenobird.com/podcast/the-backup-wrap-up-758069/how-ransomware-works-the-five-objectives-of-every-attack.md","description":"Read the agent-friendly Markdown representation of this episode resource."}]}}