According to the chief executive of American IT firm Kaseya, the largest ransomware attack in history has affected up to 1,500 businesses around the world. Hackers linked to Russia used software developed by the company as a conduit to launch the attack.
According to the firm’s CEO, Fred Voccola, they are still trying to determine the exact impact of Friday’s attack.
Kaseya is a software company that provides tools to IT outsourcing shops, which typically handle back-office work for businesses that are too small or under-resourced to have their own IT departments.
The hackers, who are thought to be linked to the notorious REvil group, used Kaseya’s VSA software, which allows businesses to remotely monitor their computer systems. Nearly 900 customers received a detection tool, according to the company.
The effects were felt most acutely in Sweden, where hundreds of supermarkets were forced to close due to cash register failures, and New Zealand, where schools and kindergartens were shut down.
Two large Dutch IT services companies and a German IT company were also among the victims.
The hackers who claimed responsibility for the breach have demanded $70 million in order to restore all of the data stolen from the affected businesses. They contacted Reuters, and one of their representatives, who did not want to be identified, said, “We are always ready to negotiate.”
The White House said on Sunday that it was investigating whether the ransomware outbreak posed a “national risk,” but Voccola said he was unaware of any nationally significant organisations being affected so far.
Criminals who use ransomware infiltrate networks and instal malware that cripples networks by scrambling all of their data when activated. When victims pay up, they are given a decoder key.
