Two Years After WannaCry Severe Risks Remain
Two years ago, WannaCry ransomware invaded the globe spreading like wildfire, encrypting hundreds of thousands of computers, in more than 150 countries in a matter of hours. It was the first time that ransomware, a malware that encrypts a user’s files and demands crypto-currency in ransom to unlock them, had spread across the world in what looked like a co-ordinated cyberattack.
UK hospitals declared a ‘major incident’ after they were taken offline by the malware and railways and commerce were also attacked.
Security researchers quickly realised the malware was spreading like a computer worm, across computers and over the network, using the Windows SMB protocol. Suspicion fell on some classified hacking malware developed by the National Security Agency, which weeks earlier had been stolen and published online for anyone to use.
An unknown hacker group, later believed to be working for the North Korean Government had used the published NSA cyber-weapons and they launched some attacks probably not realising how far the malware would go. The hackers used the NSA’s backdoor, DoublePulsar, to create a persistent backdoor that was used to deliver the WannaCry ransomware. Using the EternalBlue exploit, the ransomware spread to every other unpatched computer on the network.
A single vulnerablility and an internet-exposed system was enough to wreak havoc.
In just a few hours, the ransomware had caused billions of dollars in damages. Bitcoin wallets associated with the ransomware were used by victims to get their files back but often this did not work.
Trust in the intelligence services collapsed overnight. Lawmakers demanded to know how the NSA was going to rectify the severe damage it had caused.A month later, the world braced itself for a second round of cyberattacks in what felt like would soon become the norm.
Two years on, the threat posed by the leaked NSA tools remains a concern.
As many as 1.7 million internet-connected endpoints are still vulnerable, according to the latest data. This data is generated by Shodan, a search engine for exposed databases and devices, puts the figure at the million mark, with most of the vulnerable devices in the US.
That only accounts for devices directly connected to the internet and not the potentially millions more devices connected to those infected servers. The number of vulnerable devices is likely significantly higher and WannaCry continue to be used to deliver all sorts of malware, and new victims continue to appear.
Just weeks before the city of Atlanta was hit by ransomware, cybersecurity expert Jake Williams found its networks had been infected by NSA’s malware. More recently, the NSA tools have been repurposed as a cryptocurrency mining to generate money from the vast pools of processing power.
WannaCry caused panic. Systems were down, data was lost and money had to be spent. It was a wake-up call that society needed to do better at basic cybersecurity. But with a million-plus unpatched devices still at risk, there remains ample opportunity for further abuse.
What we may not have forgotten two years on, clearly more can be done to learn from the failings of the past.
Techcrunch: TechTarget: neuways:
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