As I was coaxing myself awake this morning with my usual jolt of strong coffee, I checked my favorite news sites & was informed of yet another ransomware attack. This one, which is believed to have originated from Ukraine, was first thought to be a variation of last year's Petya ransomware outbreak, but upon further investigation, it appears that today's malware is a new type - a worm that some computer experts are referring to as "NotPetya". This attack demands a smaller ransom (in comparison to other attacks) of approximately $300, and then begins to serve its primary purpose - to wipe files on the computer. According to researchers at Symantec, this attack used the same National Security Agency hacking tool, Eternal Blue, that was used in the WannaCry outbreak, as well as two other methods to spread the attack. According to information provided by this article on CNN, if you've installed all of the latest Windows patches, you should be safe from this particular strain of malware, however, by no means is this a reason to be complacent. Administrators and end users must still be mindful of safety precautions.
