Railway Divisional Office in Kerala hit by WannaCry ransomware

At least four computers in panchayat offices in Wayanad district were hit by the ransomware on Monday

Computers at the Personnel and Accounts Department of the Railway Divisional Office in Palakkad reported WannaCry Ransomware attack on Tuesday. The report comes just a day after computers in another government office were locked down by the virus on Monday.

About 23 computers were reportedly affected by the ransomware by afternoon. The systems contained data on internal and clerical work. None of the affected systems, officials said, had any information on booking details or information on the general public. Officials also added that the data was backed up promptly and there was no risk of losing the data.

On Monday, officials in Thariyode panchayat office claimed that they saw a message on their computer screen seeking a ransom. The message conveyed that their files had been encrypted and that they would have to pay up within seven days to recover them.

Officials claimed that the message threatened to double the ransom amount if payment wasn't made within three days. Instructions were also given on paying the ransom bitcoins, failing which, the files would be deleted.

While India was not largely affected due to the ransomware that hit close to 150 countries, the government has asked for caution to be exercised. Individual instances of computers being infected were reported from Kerala since Monday.

OneIndia News