Ransomware

Threat in Cybersecurity & Technology Failure, arrives with intent

An intent-driven cyber threat that encrypts systems and halts government services until they are restored or ransomed.

Plans also call it: ransomware attack, cyber extortion, extortion malware, cyberattack, cyber attack, cyber incident, cybersecurity incident, malware

Talk to us about RansomwareAll 73 hazards →

What you’d hand your council

The first page of a Ransomware evidence brief: likelihood, impact and readiness on your own scale, every figure sourced.

Evidence brief for Cedar Ridge County (example)

September 14, 2026

Ransomware

Threat in Cybersecurity & Technology Failure, on the established threats & hazards list

Impact
5432112345

Likelihood

Likelihood
4

Likely — Expected within the decade — roughly once in 1 to 10 years (10–100% chance in any year).

Impact
4

Major — Severe effects — casualties possible, serious damage across a significant share of the jurisdiction, essential services disrupted for weeks, outside assistance needed.

Readiness
2

Low — Some elements of capability are in place, but important gaps remain that could significantly limit the organization's ability to perform effectively. Additional development is needed before the capability can be relied upon.

  • 2source documents
  • 58verified mentions
  • —federal declarations
  • —NRI risk score
Worked example: Cedar Ridge County is fictional. The scores illustrate the format and are nobody's decision. Open a full sample brief →

The national record

FEMA’s National Risk Index doesn’t model Ransomware. Your team fills it with local evidence, and Hazzard shows the gap rather than a zero.

How it maps

The same hazard in the vocabularies your plan and FEMA already use.

FEMA National Risk Index
Not covered
FEMA declaration incident type
Not covered
NOAA Storm Events type
Not covered
Hazzard category
Cybersecurity & Technology Failure, infrastructure and technology

The national record

What the federal data says about Ransomware: nothing yet

No federal dataset scores Ransomware or files declarations under it. That's common for threats and emerging hazards, and it's why a brief for Ransomware is built from your own plans, exercises and records. Hazzard shows the gap instead of inventing a number.

In your plan

What a Ransomware profile needs, and where each part comes from

A local hazard mitigation plan profiles each hazard the same way (44 CFR 201.6). Here is how Hazzard fills each part for Ransomware.

  1. Location

    44 CFR 201.6(c)(2)(i)

    Your documents

    No national layer maps Ransomware. We draw the geographic extent from your plans, studies and annexes, cited to the page.

  2. Extent

    44 CFR 201.6(c)(2)(i)

    Your documents

    The magnitude your plans use for Ransomware (a scale, a depth, an acreage, a duration), read from your documents and cited, so the profile states the strength you plan for.

  3. Previous occurrences

    44 CFR 201.6(c)(2)(i)

    Your documents

    FEMA files no declaration type for Ransomware. The history comes from your after-action reports, incident records and plans.

  4. Probability of future events

    44 CFR 201.6(c)(2)(i)

    Your team decides

    No national dataset gives a frequency for Ransomware. Your team scores likelihood on your scale from the evidence we organize.

  5. Vulnerability and impacts

    44 CFR 201.6(c)(2)(ii)

    Your documents

    The Census population profile and HHS emPOWER counts for context; the consequences themselves come from your plans and exercises.

  6. The assessment itself

    Your team decides

    Likelihood, impact and readiness for Ransomware are drafted with every source attached, and a person on your team accepts each one. Hazzard never records a score on its own.

How we can help

How we’d help you prepare for Ransomware

  1. 1

    We start from what you own

    Your continuity plan, IT and incident-response material and exercise reports, read so each statement about Ransomware points to its source.

  2. 2

    We show the gap honestly

    No national dataset scores this for your county. The brief says so, and your team's evidence carries the score.

  3. 3

    You leave with a cited brief

    Likelihood, impact and readiness for Ransomware on your own scale, every figure tied to its source, ready for the planning team or the council.

Also in Cybersecurity & Technology Failure

Preparing for Ransomware

Bring Ransomware into the hazard plan, with evidence behind it.

Cyber incidents now sit on most threat lists, usually as a paragraph. We help you assess them the way the rest of the plan is assessed: scored, cited and owned by someone. A person replies within one business day.

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