Case Studies
Real incidents. Real outcomes.
Every case study below is drawn from a real engagement. No composites, no simulations — just what happened, how we responded, and what clients got back.
Royal Ransomware Removed Without Paying a Cent
A 5,000-employee cloud computing company was hit by Royal ransomware via a spear-phishing email. Instead of paying the $8M demand, Proven Data reverse-engineered the encryption algorithm, developed a custom decryption script, and restored all data in 5 days for $29,000 — less than 1% of the ransom demand.
Black Basta at a Law Firm: 99% Ransom Reduction
Black Basta ransomware encrypted all case files and client data at a 200-employee law firm, with attackers claiming to have exfiltrated data (double extortion). Proven Data negotiated the ransom from $1M to $10,000, forensically disproved the data theft claim, and exploited a weakness in Black Basta's encryption to recover most data in-house.
LockBit 3 at a 6,500-Person Tech Firm: $14M to $1.5M
LockBit 3 ransomware breached a 6,500-employee technology firm's servers, encrypting intellectual property, research data, employee records, and client data. Proven Data negotiated the $14M demand down to $1.5M, managed OFAC-compliant cryptocurrency payment, and restored all systems within 48 hours — for a total service fee of $5,900.
SEXi Ransomware Takes Down a Data Center — No Ransom Paid
IxMetro PowerHost, a data center operator serving customers across the US, South America, and Europe, was hit by SEXi ransomware in April 2024. The attack encrypted VMware ESXi servers and all backups, affecting 1,000 customers and carrying a $140M ransom demand. Proven Data deployed advanced decryption, coordinated recovery across all stakeholders, and forensically confirmed no data was exfiltrated — no ransom was paid.
83% Ransom Reduction Saves a 70-Person Medical Practice
A 70-employee medical care company was hit by ransomware with a $900,000 demand — threatening both the business and patient care continuity. Proven Data negotiated the ransom down 83% to $150,000, decrypted all patient data, and restored full operations within 72 hours, preserving the jobs of all 70+ employees.
Housing Company Restored in Under 24 Hours
A housing company's critical data was encrypted by ransomware with a $700,000 demand. Proven Data performed a full digital forensics investigation, negotiated the ransom down to $150,000, and restored all systems in under 24 hours — minimizing reputational and operational damage.
Banking Institution: $3M Ransomware + Full Vulnerability Assessment
A ~3,000-employee banking institution was hit by ransomware that exploited vulnerabilities in their PCI environment, resulting in a $3M ransom demand. Proven Data negotiated a 56% reduction and conducted a comprehensive Vulnerability Assessment to identify, prioritize, and remediate the security gaps that enabled the attack.
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