Key Takeaways AI ransomware defense in Drive for Desktop — Detects mass encryption/corruption, automatically pauses sync to prevent spread, and alerts users.
— Detects mass encryption/corruption, automatically pauses sync to prevent spread, and alerts users. One-click recovery — Quickly restore Docs, Sheets, Slides, PDFs, and more to a healthy state after removing the infection.
— Quickly restore Docs, Sheets, Slides, PDFs, and more to a healthy state after removing the infection. Wide, default rollout — Open beta; free for most Workspace plans; enabled by default (admins can disable); requires Drive for Desktop v114+.
— Open beta; free for most Workspace plans; enabled by default (admins can disable); requires Drive for Desktop v114+. Privacy + intel — Google says customer data isn’t used to train AI without permission; detection leverages VirusTotal and aims to cut downtime amid rising attacks.
Google Drive for Desktop users can now restore their important data if they fall victim to a ransomware attack.
According to the recent Google Workspace update, your Drive for Desktop will now feature AI-powered ransomware detection, which will halt syncing if it detects a ransomware attack.
As a result, ransomware won’t affect your documents saved in Google Drive or in Drive for Desktop on another device. Once you’ve removed the infection, you can easily restore files on the compromised computer from your unaffected Google Drive.
This helpful feature comes at a crucial time, as ransomware incidents are increasing rapidly.
The Rise of Ransomware
Ransomware groups are on the rise. The Searchlight Cyber report revealed that there were 73 ransomware groups in the first half of 2024, representing a 56% increase from the 46 groups identified in the first half of 2023.
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