A Quick Summary On WannaCry, The Biggest Ransomware Outbreak In History
2 min read
While most of us are enjoying our Friday night, hackers launched a global-scale cyber attack by spreading a ransomware known as WannaCry, aka WanaCrypt0r 2.0 or WCry. According to Kaspersky Lab and Avast, the ransomware hits approximately 100,000 computers in nearly 100 countries.
Who Is Behind The Ransomware WannaCry?
While the creator of WannaCry has yet to be identified, the blame is put on the cyber gang Shadow Brokers. The gang allegedly stole a hacking tool from NSA and leaked it on an obscure site. Eternal Blue, the leaked hacking tool capable of accessing ALL Microsoft Windows found by the WannaCry creator, are then used to spread the ransomware.
What Does It Do and How To Fix It?
Giant corporate, National Health Services, international shippers, etc are among the victims of the ransomware outbreak. The victims are left with nothing but heavily encrypted files which they can no longer access to. To get back the access to these files, ransom money in the form of BitCoin has to be paid.
As it is impossible to trace a BitCoin transaction, getting the access to the files are not guaranteed after payment. Paying the ransom money are not recommended, as you are financially supporting the hackers this way. You will have to accept the fact that you’ll be losing those files for good, take it as a lesson.
Preventive Measures
In response to this, Microsoft has already released the security update patches for the exploits. Although some of Microsoft’s update packages can be shady sometimes, but at least it gets things fixed.
Try to make backing up important files regularly to a NAS or cloud storage a habit. It helps to minimise the damage in case if you’re that unlucky to get hit by a ransomware. Installing ransomware from reputable software providers to your computers helps to fight off the malware. Acronis, Cyberreason, BitDefender, Kaspersky Lab, Avast, and Sophos among the reputable providers you can look out for.
And last but not least, avoid any shady websites, pirated software, too good to be true deals from your browser pop-up or email. You wouldn’t know when you’ll get yourself stranded in a ransomware mess, which will truly make you WannaCry.
(Source: The Telegraph)
