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Europol has said on Sunday that the unprecedented WannaCry ransomware global cyberattack has hit more than 200,000 victims in scores of countries, and warned that the situation could escalate when people return to work.
The indiscriminate attack, which began Friday, struck banks, hospitals and government agencies in more than 150 countries, exploiting known vulnerabilities in old Microsoft computer operating systems.
Europol executive director Rob Wainwright said the situation could worsen on Monday as workers return to their offices after the weekend and log on, according to a report by AFP.
“We’ve never seen anything like this,” the head of the European Union’s policing agency told Britain’s ITV television, calling its reach “unprecedented”.
“The latest count is over 200,000 victims in at least 150 countries. Many of those victims will be businesses, including large corporations.
“We’re in the face of an escalating threat.
“I’m worried about how the numbers will continue to grow when people go to work and turn on their machines on Monday,” the police chief added.
Images appear on victims’ screens demanding payment of $300 (275 euros) in the virtual currency Bitcoin, saying: “Ooops, your files have been encrypted!”
Payment is demanded within three days or the price is doubled, and if none is received within seven days the locked files will be deleted, according to the screen message.
Bitcoin, the world’s most-used virtual currency, allows for anonymous transactions, which happen via heavily encrypted codes.
Experts and governments alike warn against ceding to the demands and Wainwright said few victims so far have been paying up.
US software firm Symantec said that part-way through Saturday, transactions totalling $28,600 had taken place through the five Bitcoin addresses used by the ransomware.
“Paying the ransom does not guarantee the encrypted files will be released,” the US Department of Homeland Security’s computer emergency response team said.
“It only guarantees that the malicious actors receive the victim’s money, and in some cases, their banking information,” it added.
However, an international manhunt
was well under way for the plotters behind the world’s biggest-ever computer ransom assault.