European and British policing and security agencies have warned that the fallout from an unprecedented global cyber attack could worsen as people return to work. An international manhunt was under way for the plotters behind the world’s biggest-ever computer ransom assault, which has hit more than 200,000 victims and has affected more than 150 countries.
The indiscriminate attack, which began Friday, struck banks, hospitals and government agencies, exploiting known vulnerabilities in old Microsoft computer operating systems. Europol executive director Rob Wainwright said the situation could worsen today when workers return to their offices after the weekend and log on.
Meanwhile, Indian Government’s cyber security arm CERT-In has alerted vital institutions including RBI, stock markets and NPCI against the latest cyber attack that has infected thousands of systems globally.
Yesterday, it has issued a list of do’s and dont’s to these agencies and advised installation of relevant “patches” to protect against any data breaches.
