TEMPO.CO, Jakarta - The WannaCry malware is still rampant in the third quarter of 2018. The cyber security company Kaspersky Lab published a report stated that the WannaCry topped the list of the most spread crypto malware. It attacked 74,621 unique users around the world, after spreading for one and a half year.
“The increase in the attack of WannaCry is a reminder that the epidemic does not end as fast as it started. There will always be long-term consequences,” said security researcher Kaspersky Lab Fedor Sinitsyn, in a written statement on Saturday, November 17.
The attacks accounted for 28.72 percent of all users targeted by the crypto malware in the third quarter of 2018. The percentage increased compared to the previous year, which was 16.78 percent.
“In the case of crypto malware, the attacks can be so severe that it is necessary to take preventative steps and patch the device, rather than having to deal with encrypted files,” Sinitsyn said.
The WannaCry malware converts files on the victim’s computer into encrypted data and requests a ransom for the decryption key. Or it is made by the perpetrator to decipher the file and convert it back to original data, making it impossible to operate the infected device.
“The consequences of the WannaCry epidemic are very worrying because the victims are often the organizations that have network systems, such as companies, factories and hospitals, the malware can paralyze their operations,” Sinitsyn continued.
Overall, Kaspersky Lab has protected 259,867 unique users from the crypto malware attacks. The statistics showed a high increase of 39 percent since the second quarter of 2018, which amounted to 158,921.
“From the observation, the growth is fast but stable, with the increase every month counted from the number of users,” Sinitsyn said.
“Seeing WannaCry as part of crypto malware, Indonesia is ranked 6th as the country that gets the most crypto malware attacks in the third quarter of 2018,” he said.
MOH KHORY ALFARIZI
