Cyberattack Aftershock Feared as U.S. Warns of Its Complexity 点击查看本文中文版
The components of the global cyberattack that seized hundreds of thousands of computer systems last week may be more complex than originally believed, a Trump administration official said Sunday, and experts warned that the effects of the malicious software could linger for some time.
As a new workweek started Monday in Asia, there were concerns the malicious software could spread further and in different forms, with new types of ransomware afflicting computers around the globe.
There were initial reports of new cases found over the weekend in Japan, South Korea and Taiwan.
President Trump has ordered his homeland security adviser, Thomas P. Bossert, who has a background in cyberissues, to coordinate the government’s response to the spread of the malware and help organize the search for who was responsible, an administration official said Sunday.
The attack is more complicated because “the experts tell us that this code was cobbled together from many places and sources,” according to an administration official who insisted on anonymity to discuss the government’s cybersecurity plans. The more potential sources of the malicious code, the harder it is for investigators to run down the trail of possible perpetrators.
The source of the attack is a delicate issue for the United States because the vulnerability on which the malicious software is based was published by a group called the Shadow Brokers, which last summer began publishing cybertools developed by the National Security Agency.
Government investigators, while not publicly acknowledging that the computer code was developed by American intelligence agencies as part of the country’s growing arsenal of cyberweapons, say they are still investigating how the code got out. There are many theories, but increasingly it looks as though the initial breach came from an insider, perhaps a government contractor.
Copycat variants of the malicious software behind the attacks have begun to proliferate, according to experts who were on guard for new attacks. “We are in the second wave,” said Matthieu Suiche of Comae Technologies, a cybersecurity company based in the United Arab Emirates. “As expected, the attackers have released new variants of the malware. We can surely expect more.”
The National Police Agency in Japan found two computers with the malicious software over the weekend, according to reports by NHK, the national broadcaster. One instance was found on a personal computer in a hospital and the other on a private citizen’s home computer. A hospital in Taiwan also reported that one of its computers was compromised, Taiwan’s Central News Agency said Sunday.
Five businesses in South Korea reported ransomware attacks over the weekend, according to the government’s internet security agency, and a Korean theater chain said late-night moviegoers on Sunday alerted them when computer ransom notes appeared on screens instead of programmed advertisements.
The spread of the malicious software, or malware, has focused attention on several questions, including why a software patch, issued by Microsoft in March, was not installed by more users. But for many systems, especially older systems, such patches are not installed automatically — a fact the hackers took advantage of. Microsoft has not said how it became aware of the vulnerability, but it seems likely it was tipped off by the National Security Agency.
Brad Smith, the president and chief legal officer of Microsoft, said in a blog post Sunday that the attack should be a “wake-up call” for the tech industry, consumers and governments.
Mr. Smith said that Microsoft had the “first responsibility” for addressing vulnerabilities in its software, and that customers must be vigilant. But he said the latest attack showed the dangers of governments’ “stockpiling of vulnerabilities.”
“Repeatedly, exploits in the hands of governments have leaked into the public domain and caused widespread damage,” Mr. Smith wrote.
So far, the main targets of the attack have been outside the United States. But neither the federal government nor American corporations assume that this will continue to be the case.
Britain’s National Cyber Security Center said Sunday that it had seen “no sustained new attacks” but warned that compromised computers might not have been detected yet and that the malware could further spread within networks.
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