Concerns Mount Over Widespread Cyberattack in Dozens of Countries as Work Week Begins

As the work week begins on Monday, government officials, organizations, and commercial and business entities around the world are watching anxiously for the potential consequences of a widespread cyberattack affecting nearly 100 countries worldwide.

Experts have been closely monitoring markets and public and private sector organizations in Asia since April 14, the last day of the weekly break in the Gregorian calendar; a continent where the spread of the ransomware attack known as “WannaCry” has been less extensive than in other regions, except in Taiwan. Nevertheless, the work week in mid-May begins Monday morning first in East Asia, and for this reason experts are monitoring the situation as employees and staff return to their desks.

Reports of the “WannaCry” ransomware attack were released in the final days of last week. Cybersecurity firm Avast said the malware has carried out 75,000 attacks on 99 countries worldwide. According to this report, WannaCry, after attacking computers, locks them and demands a ransom of between $300 and $600 to unlock them.

This ransomware has targeted various organizations, institutions, and entities ranging from hospitals, banks, and shops to schools and government offices, and has infiltrated computer systems through outdated versions of Microsoft that had not been updated and were defenseless against attacks.

Estimates show this attack is the most extensive ransomware attack ever recorded and reported to date.

Europol, the European Police Office, says so far 200,000 people across hundreds of thousands of organizations and institutions worldwide have become victims of the WannaCry ransomware attack. International investigations and operations to apprehend the person or persons behind the attacks continue.

There is currently concern that as the work week begins on Monday, a greater number of employees, staff members, government and private sector organizations, and small and large traders will fall victim to this ransomware.

Source: Radio Farda