Last Friday the 12th May, a new wave of ransomware known as “WannaCryptor” spread across the globe taking advantage of a security vulnerability found on 200,000 computers in more than 150 countries.
Once a PC is infected, all files are encrypted by the ransomware and locked behind a paywall, forcing the user to comply or risk losing their files.
In the wake of the attack, Microsoft released a critical Windows update to all operating systems. They urged customers, including those on the unsupported systems such as Windows XP, Windows Vista and Windows Server 2003, to apply the MS17-010 hotfix update as soon as possible.
The ransomware mainly affected XP systems, which some industries are almost forced to still use due to custom/proprietary software and integrations, e.g. specialist medical equipment — hence the NHS being so impacted.
Some of the disruptions were due to places turning off their systems to prevent infection, rather than them actually being infected. With ransomware, this is the best protection. For businesses and mission-critical data, we recommend a multi-tiered backup solution.
As mentioned, Microsoft has released a patch, despite them ceasing all support for Windows XP. You can find the patch here — technet.microsoft.com/ms17-010, and we advise to upgrade to their latest operating system, Windows 10. We also strongly advise using extreme caution when opening email attachments.
Here is a handy script from ESET internet security to check if your system is at risk — github.com
We are also partnered with ESET and provide Web Security as a service. Please be in touch if you would like more information on our Web Security package or if you have any other questions — [email protected].