Intellectual Property, Information Technology & Cybersecurity

By: Kevin D. Pomfret, Anthony H. Anikeeff & Kelsey S. Farbotko

Many companies from around the globe are continuing their recovery efforts after a massive ransomware attack affected hundreds of thousands of computers across various industries and throughout several nations.  Ransomware is a type of malware that encrypts files on infected networks, rendering them useless, and then issues a ransom demand, often in Bitcoin, for the decryption of the data.[i]  On Friday, a ransomware variant known as “WannaCry,” which was purportedly generated and disseminated using a stolen National Security Agency toolkit, spread rapidly throughout approximately 150 countries, affecting organizations such as the British National Health Service, Federal Express, and Nissan.[ii]  The National Health Service in Britain was particularly hard hit with at least 40 organizations affected, leaving critical data such as patient and scheduling data and email unavailable.[iii]

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