A new ransomware attacked computers worldwide starting Tuesday and the malware has spread to at least 65 countries as of Wednesday, according to reports.
The cyber attack first hit Kiev, Ukraine spreading in the networks of electrical grid, airport, railway system, government offices and a radiation monitoring at the destroyed Chernobyl nuclear power station before infecting Russia’s energy, telecommunications and financial institutions.
Companies that were affected were Rosneft, Bashneft, Mars, Nivea and Mondelez International in Russia; Maersk, the largest shipping company in the world, in Denmark; pharmaceutical company Merck in New Jersey, USA; and FedEx’s TNT Express service, reports Cnet and Tass, the Russian news agency.
Cybersecurity experts described the Petya as smarter than the WannaCry ransomware that struck in May and was controlled via a killswitch, which shut down every infection.
The Petya worm blocks computers and prevents users from uploading an operating system and extorts a $300 ransom in bitcoins to regain computer access and decrypt files, according to Internet security company Group-IB.
The Petya encrypts not just files but the the entire hard drive and forces a computer to restart. It also deletes the computer’s event logs to cover its tracks and hide from analysts, Cnet quoted security researcher Mark Mager of Endgame as saying.
credit: Flickr, courtesy of Christiaan Colen Cyber
