#Europol: Wannacry Ransomware: #CyberAttack could escalate

Rob Wainwright, Executive Director of Europol, says 'Now is the time for all sectors to take note of cyber security as a huge strategic concern'. In an interview in the UK, Wainwright said that the banks had learned from painful experience and that other sectors of key strategic concern need to take notice and act.

Europol say that this could be the largest ransomware attack ever and that computer networks in more than 150 countries and more than 200,000 people have been affected. Europol estimates that the situation is likely to escalate as people return to work on Monday.

The number of affected networks and individuals is likely to go up, he said, because “many workers left their computer turned on last Friday and will probably find out that they are also affected by the malware on Monday morning.”

The European Cybercrime Centre, EC3, at Europol is working closely with affected countries cybercrime units and key industry partners to mitigate the threat and assist victims. The recent attack is at an unprecedented level and will require a complex international investigation to identify the culprits. The Joint Cybercrime Action Taskforce (JCAT), at EC3 is a group of specialist international cyber investigators and is specially designed to assist in such investigations and will play an important role in supporting the investigation.

What is #ransomware? Find out more about how you can prevent and report it: https://t.co/3HIV2MNttQ. #NoMoreRansom #NeverPay @EC3Europol pic.twitter.com/ey8I0K8NpP

— Europol (@Europol) May 13, 2017

For further information on Ransomware, how to protect your data, devices, what to do when infected with ransomware and access to unlocking tools please visit https://www.nomoreransom.org/, a free online resource developed by Europol, Dutch Police and industry partners.

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