Growing Concerns Over Widespread Cyber Attack in Dozens of Countries as Work Week Begins

With the start of the work week on Monday, government officials, organizations, and commercial entities around the world are anxiously watching the potential consequences of a widespread cyber attack affecting nearly 100 countries. Experts have been closely monitoring markets and government and private organizations in Asia since May 13, the last day of the weekly holidays in the Gregorian calendar; a continent where the spread of the ransomware known as 'WannaCry' has been less extensive than elsewhere, except in Taiwan. Nevertheless, the mid-May work week begins on Monday morning in East Asia, prompting experts to monitor the situation as employees return to their desks. Reports of the 'WannaCry' ransomware attack emerged in the last days of the previous week. The cybersecurity company Avast has stated that this malware has executed 75,000 attacks in 99 countries. According to this report, 'WannaCry' locks computers after attacking them and demands a ransom of $300 to $600 to unlock them. This ransomware has targeted various organizations, institutions, and entities ranging from hospitals, banks, shops to schools and government offices, entering computer systems through outdated, unpatched versions of Microsoft software that were defenseless against attacks. Estimates indicate that this attack is the largest online ransomware attack ever recorded and reported. Europol, the European police agency, reports that so far 200,000 people across hundreds of thousands of organizations worldwide have fallen victim to the 'WannaCry' ransomware attack. International investigations and operations to arrest the individuals behind the attacks are ongoing. Currently, there is concern that with the start of the work week on Monday, more employees, government and private organizations, and both small and large traders may become victims of this ransomware.