A massive attack is spreading globally by way of a vulnerability in Microsoft 's Server Message Block that was patched Vulnerability-related.PatchVulnerability in March . Ransomware is no longer just a nuisance . Now it 's quite literally a matter of life and death . A massive ransomware attack Attack.Ransom being labeled as `` WannaCry Attack.Ransom `` has been reported around the world and is responsible for shutting down hospitals in the United Kingdom and encrypting files at Spanish telecom firm Telefonica . The WannaCry attack Attack.Ransom is not a zero-day flaw , but rather is based on an exploit that Microsoft patched Vulnerability-related.PatchVulnerability with its MS17-010 advisory on March 14 in the SMB Server . However , Microsoft did not highlight Vulnerability-related.DiscoverVulnerability the SMB flaw until April 14 , when a hacker group known as the Shadow Brokers released Vulnerability-related.DiscoverVulnerability a set of exploits , allegedly stolen Attack.Databreach from the U.S.National Security Agency . SMB , or Server Message Block , is a critical protocol used by Windows to enable file and folder sharing . It 's also the protocol that today 's WannaCry attack Attack.Ransom is exploiting to rapidly spread from one host to the next around the world , literally at the speed of light . The attack is what is known as a worm , `` slithering '' from one host to the next on connected networks . Among the first large organizations to be impacted by WannaCry is The National Health Service in the UK , which has publicly confirmed that it was attacked Attack.Ransom by the Wan na Decryptor. `` This attack Attack.Ransom was not specifically targeted at the NHS and is affecting organisations from across a range of sectors , '' the NHS stated . `` At this stage we do not have any evidence that patient data has been accessed Attack.Databreach . '' Security firm Kaspersky Lab reported that by 2:30 p.m . ET May 12 it had already seen more than 45,000 WannaCry attacks Attack.Ransom in 74 countries . While the ransomware attack Attack.Ransom is making use of the SMB vulnerability to spread , the encryption of files is done by the Wanna Decryptor attack Attack.Ransom that seeks out all files on a victim 's network . Once the ransomware has completed encrypting files , victims are presented with a screen demanding a ransom Attack.Ransom . Initially , the ransom requested Attack.Ransom was reported to be $ 300 worth of Bitcoin , according to Kaspersky Lab . `` Many of your documents , photos , videos , databases and other files are no longer accessible because they have been encrypted , '' the ransom note states . `` Maybe you are busy looking for a way to recover your files , but do not waste your time . Nobody can recover your files without our decryption service . '' It 's not clear who the original source of the global WannaCry attacks Attack.Ransom is at this point , or even if it 's a single threat actor or multiple actors . What is clear is that despite the fact that a software patch has been available Vulnerability-related.PatchVulnerability since March for the SMB flaws , WannaCry is using tens of thousands of organizations that did n't patch Vulnerability-related.PatchVulnerability .

Since last Friday , over 200,000 victims in 150 countries have been hit Attack.Ransom by a massive , international ransomware cyberattack Attack.Ransom called WannaCry . Ransomware is a type of malware that works by seizing control of and blocking access to a computer ’ s files , programs , and operations . Users are then informed that they must pay Attack.Ransom a certain amount in order to regain access to their files , with the threat of permanently losing all of their data if they choose not to pay Attack.Ransom . In the WannaCry attack Attack.Ransom , users were given three days to make the payment Attack.Ransom before the fee increased , and seven days before the files would be lost forever . The massive scope and potential financial impact of the WannaCry attack Attack.Ransom has understandably caused a lot of panic , and companies and individuals alike have been rushing to protect their devices . However , this frenzy has opened up new damaging routes for fraud . One of these attack routes is through mobile applications that have been found on third-party application stores . There are various mobile applications advertising that they can be used to protect users from the WannaCry ransomware . However , our analysts found that some of these apps contained adware meant to infect the devices they are downloaded onto . Rather than protecting users ’ devices , they are causing them harm . The adware found is classified as Adware.mobidash , which is a module that attackers used to include into Android games and apps and monetize them . This adware has the capability to load webpages with ads , show other messages in the status bar , and modify the DNS server . This is quite dangerous as the real risk lies in the fact that the end user ’ s device is performing unwanted activity without their authorization . To hide this dangerous behavior , the adware doesn ’ t start to perform its malicious activity immediately ; instead , it lies latent in the device before activating after a short period of time . We have blogged a lot about digital trust , fake news , and all sorts of tricks Attack.Phishing that criminals use to get the attention of consumers to get them to click on a link . Yet we continue to be amazed by how sophisticated the manipulation of the human factor has become . It will only be a matter of time until we see the WannaCry malware expand further to trick Attack.Phishing end users into installing Vulnerability-related.PatchVulnerability a patch that allegedly prevents the new massive ransomware attack Attack.Ransom . However , this time it will not be a patch , but a new version or variant of a financially motivated malware .

Since last Friday , over 200,000 victims in 150 countries have been hit Attack.Ransom by a massive , international ransomware cyberattack Attack.Ransom called WannaCry . Ransomware is a type of malware that works by seizing control of and blocking access to a computer ’ s files , programs , and operations . Users are then informed that they must pay Attack.Ransom a certain amount in order to regain access to their files , with the threat of permanently losing all of their data if they choose not to pay Attack.Ransom . In the WannaCry attack Attack.Ransom , users were given three days to make the payment Attack.Ransom before the fee increased , and seven days before the files would be lost forever . The massive scope and potential financial impact of the WannaCry attack Attack.Ransom has understandably caused a lot of panic , and companies and individuals alike have been rushing to protect their devices . However , this frenzy has opened up new damaging routes for fraud . One of these attack routes is through mobile applications that have been found on third-party application stores . There are various mobile applications advertising that they can be used to protect users from the WannaCry ransomware . However , our analysts found that some of these apps contained adware meant to infect the devices they are downloaded onto . Rather than protecting users ’ devices , they are causing them harm . The adware found is classified as Adware.mobidash , which is a module that attackers used to include into Android games and apps and monetize them . This adware has the capability to load webpages with ads , show other messages in the status bar , and modify the DNS server . This is quite dangerous as the real risk lies in the fact that the end user ’ s device is performing unwanted activity without their authorization . To hide this dangerous behavior , the adware doesn ’ t start to perform its malicious activity immediately ; instead , it lies latent in the device before activating after a short period of time . We have blogged a lot about digital trust , fake news , and all sorts of tricks Attack.Phishing that criminals use to get the attention of consumers to get them to click on a link . Yet we continue to be amazed by how sophisticated the manipulation of the human factor has become . It will only be a matter of time until we see the WannaCry malware expand further to trick Attack.Phishing end users into installing Vulnerability-related.PatchVulnerability a patch that allegedly prevents the new massive ransomware attack Attack.Ransom . However , this time it will not be a patch , but a new version or variant of a financially motivated malware .

Cyber security experts reveal they have found a second massive computer virus which has affected hundreds of thousands of computers world-wide , like the WannaCry cyber attack Attack.Ransom last week , has affected hundreds of thousands of computers world-wide and may have North Korean origins . This second global hack exploits the same Microsoft vulnerabilities as the WannaCry attack Attack.Ransom and it is estimated to have infected more than 200,000 computers . The full scale of this attack , however , is still being determined due to the fact the attack is on-going . Preliminary analysis by California-based cyber security firm Proofpoint , which revealed the existence of this more subtle virus , suggests “ that this attack may be larger in scale than WannaCry ” , the company said in an online statement . Unlike last week ’ s attack which infected more than 300,000 computers since last Friday , this second cyber attack is thought to have begun either in late April or early May , but it had avoided being detected until recently , said Proofpoint researchers . Computers infected by this second virus do not have their functions altered , nor are their files encrypted . Instead , they manufacture digital currency . Proofpoint said the virus installs the Adylkuzz currency “ miner ” – a sort of malware which hijacks a computer ’ s processing power to solve complex math problems and earn digital money . There exists several different kinds of online currencies , the most famous being Bitcoin . But this second attack is designed to generate a newer form of digital cash called Monero . Monero offers enhanced anonymity features and is the currency of darknet market place AlphaBay . Experts also believe the currency has been pursued by North Korea-linked hacker groups . Proofpoint estimates this relatively unobtrusive computer virus generated more than a million euro – much more than what the WannaCry hackers extorted Attack.Ransom from their ransomware attack Attack.Ransom . A North Korean hacker group called the Lazarus Group is thought to be behind last week ’ s massive ransomware attack Attack.Ransom and now it is thought a segment of this hacker group may be behind the currency mining attack . Kapersky Lab , a cyber security firm , said a segment of the Lazarus group had installed software on a European server in early April to mine Monero currency , said Reuters . Proofpoint executive Ryan Kalember , speaking to Reuters , said he believes these two attacks are “ more than coincidence ” . “ It ’ s a really strong overlap ” , he told Reuters . “ It ’ s not like you see Monero miners all over the world . ”