75,000 ransomware attacks hit 99 countries on Friday

There have been 75,000 ransomware attacks in 99 countries on Friday. Ransomeware attacks have been targeting organisations across the world. A majority of the attacks targeted Russia, Ukraine and Taiwan.

The ransomware locks down all the files on an infected computer and asks the computer's administrator to pay in order to regain control of them, CNN reported.

The ransomware, called "WannaCry," is spread by taking advantage of a Windows vulnerability that Microsoft released a security patch for in March. But computers and networks that haven't updated their systems are at risk, the report also stated.

Affected machines have six hours to pay up and every few hours the ransom goes up, said Kurt Baumgartner, the principal security researcher at security firm Kaspersky Lab.

According to the report, organizations in the UK have been hit, and some of those hospitals have canceled outpatient appointments and told people to avoid emergency departments if possible.

Russia's Interior Ministry released a statement acknowledging a ransomware attack on its computers, adding that less than 1% of computers were affected, and that the virus is now "localized." The statement said antivirus systems are working to destroy it.

OneIndia News