The US and UK say Russia was behind the huge NotPetya ransomware attack
In a rare example of directly attributing blame, the British government says Russia orchestrated the massive cyberattack in 2017.
Back story: Last summer a new breed of ransomware, dubbed NotPetya and based on a Windows flaw leaked from the NSA, held computers around the world hostage. It hit Ukraine particularly hard, but it was felt globally—from India’s largest container port to US hospitals.
Blaming Russia: According to the Guardian, the UK’s foreign office minister for cybersecurity, Lord Ahmad, says that “the Russian government, specifically the Russian military, was responsible for the destructive NotPetya cyberattack.”
Bracing for more: Meanwhile, UK defense secretary Gavin Williamson says, “We have entered a new era of warfare, witnessing a destructive and deadly mix of conventional military might and malicious cyberattacks ... We must be primed and ready to tackle these stark and intensifying threats.”
Update, 16 February: The White House has now confirmed that it, too, blames Russia for the NotPetya attacks.
Deep Dive
Computing
Learning to code isn’t enough
Historically, learn-to-code efforts have provided opportunities for the few, but new efforts are aiming to be inclusive.
IBM wants to build a 100,000-qubit quantum computer
The company wants to make large-scale quantum computers a reality within just 10 years.
The inside story of New York City’s 34-year-old social network, ECHO
Stacy Horn set out to create something new and very New York. She didn’t expect it to last so long.
Making the world a data-driven place with the cloud
Cloud data modernizations is a key enabler to spur innovation and get real value out of your data, says PwC’s Anil Nagaraj and Microsoft’s Kim Manis.
Stay connected
Get the latest updates from
MIT Technology Review
Discover special offers, top stories, upcoming events, and more.