Twelve countries are hit with cyberattacks said to use a leaked NSA hacking tool

[TightEnd]

for the layman

what should we (as individuals) do about ransomware that we night not already be doing?

http://www.cnbc.com/2017/05/12/cyberattacks-in-12-nations-said-to-use-leaked-nsa-hacking-tool.html

[bobAlike]

Never open attachments in emails unless you're expecting something from a known source. If you're not sure just hold shift and delete to permanently get rid of. Obviously make sure your malware and anti virus applications are up to date.

[Longines]

for the layman

what should we (as individuals) do about ransomware that we night not already be doing?

1. Upgrade to Windows 10. The latest ransomware only works on Windows XP, 7 & 8. Win10 also downloads and installs patches automatically - the patch for the current issue was released in March.

2. Take backups. Assume your PC goes up in flames today, what will you have lost? Ransomware, unless you're willing to pay the $000's demanded, is essentially the same.  Gmail and OneDrive provide gigabytes of free storage space to backup your important docs/photos/etc.

[doubleup]

Stop putting fuckwits* in charge of organisations that are highly reliant on computers.


* that means Jeremy Hunt (also the CEO of any private sector business significantly affected should be sacked)

[tikay]

This is a really big deal, but the media are portraying it as an attack on the NHS, & that's not the case at all - it's a global thing, & it will attack those most vulnerable or who have poorly maintained sites or lax security protocols.

Russia has been worst hit, followed by Spain, or that was the case yesterday, & that could change.

The NHS is especially vulnerable due to the very nature of how it uses the internet, with so many linked networks (Hospitals, Surgeries, Drug Companies etc), &, sad to say, it would seem to have very poor digital security.  I'd say it was unlikely that any high volume commercial organisations will be vulnerable, simply because they take online security very seriously indeed.  

There's quite an interesting piece about the whole thing here;

https://www.bleepingcomputer.com/news/security/wana-decryptor-wanacrypt0r-technical-nose-dive/
 

[Woodsey]

Stop putting fuckwits* in charge of organisations that are highly reliant on computers.


* that means Jeremy Hunt (also the CEO of any private sector business significantly affected should be sacked)

The heat will likely come to the IT guy responsible not the CEO, it's the CEO that will probably do the sacking if it can't be resolved...

[Jon MW]

Stop putting fuckwits* in charge of organisations that are highly reliant on computers.


* that means Jeremy Hunt (also the CEO of any private sector business significantly affected should be sacked)

The heat will likely come to the IT guy responsible not the CEO, it's the CEO that will probably do the sacking if it can't be resolved...

Which is as it should be isn't it(?)

If I was in charge of IT I wouldn't want the CEO micro-managing everything I do - the flip side to that is that it would be my fault if there was a screw up.

[kukushkin88]

Stop putting fuckwits* in charge of organisations that are highly reliant on computers.


* that means Jeremy Hunt (also the CEO of any private sector business significantly affected should be sacked)

The heat will likely come to the IT guy responsible not the CEO, it's the CEO that will probably do the sacking if it can't be resolved...

Which is as it should be isn't it(?)

If I was in charge of IT I wouldn't want the CEO micro-managing everything I do - the flip side to that is that it would be my fault if there was a screw up.

Sounds good. How does this situation change if the CEO has given you a woefully inadequate amount of money to enable to do your job?

[doubleup]

Stop putting fuckwits* in charge of organisations that are highly reliant on computers.


* that means Jeremy Hunt (also the CEO of any private sector business significantly affected should be sacked)

The heat will likely come to the IT guy responsible not the CEO, it's the CEO that will probably do the sacking if it can't be resolved...

Which is as it should be isn't it(?)

If I was in charge of IT I wouldn't want the CEO micro-managing everything I do - the flip side to that is that it would be my fault if there was a screw up.

No it isn't imo.  For some reason "the buck stops here" has been eliminated from business and political leaders.  They simply refuse to accept responsibility for large scale failure.  The latest scam for CEOs is that they don't get their bonus when there is a horrific cock-up costing shareholders millions.

[Doobs]

Stop putting fuckwits* in charge of organisations that are highly reliant on computers.


* that means Jeremy Hunt (also the CEO of any private sector business significantly affected should be sacked)

The heat will likely come to the IT guy responsible not the CEO, it's the CEO that will probably do the sacking if it can't be resolved...

Which is as it should be isn't it(?)

If I was in charge of IT I wouldn't want the CEO micro-managing everything I do - the flip side to that is that it would be my fault if there was a screw up.

Sounds good. How does this situation change if the CEO has given you a woefully inadequate amount of money to enable to do your job?

Woefully inadequate amounts of money isn't a term often used in connection with NHS IT projects

[KarmaDope]

Something like this is always going to affect the NHS first, as a lot of the systems that they use aren't compatible with Windows 8/10 so they have to keep using older Windows versions.

Some of the stuff they used when I was last working in it (18 months ago), would only work on Windows XP for crying out loud!

[rfgqqabc]

Something like this is always going to affect the NHS first, as a lot of the systems that they use aren't compatible with Windows 8/10 so they have to keep using older Windows versions.

Some of the stuff they used when I was last working in it (18 months ago), would only work on Windows XP for crying out loud!

Is it just horrifically underfunded? Why do they only work on xp? Too many systems to update? Why aren't more of these systems airlocked? It doesn't appear they get system updates too often so why connect them to the net?

Nhs

[KarmaDope]

Something like this is always going to affect the NHS first, as a lot of the systems that they use aren't compatible with Windows 8/10 so they have to keep using older Windows versions.

Some of the stuff they used when I was last working in it (18 months ago), would only work on Windows XP for crying out loud!

Is it just horrifically underfunded? Why do they only work on xp? Too many systems to update? Why aren't more of these systems airlocked? It doesn't appear they get system updates too often so why connect them to the net?

Nhs

Nah, they're specialist systems for specialisms that are either horrifically expensive to replace (privately) or that the Trust involved doesnt want to replace them.

[DaveShoelace]

I'm guessing us latte sipping kale eating macbook using hipster douchebags are relatively safe from all this?

[Longines]

I'm guessing us latte sipping kale eating macbook using hipster douchebags are relatively safe from all this?

You missed out smug.

Yes.