Frankie Cordeira Jr.

Description: DID KIM HACK THE WORLD? A hacking group linked to North Korea is thought to be behind the cyber attack that wreaked havoc across the globe according to security experts. Analysts from security firms Symantec and Kaspersky revealed that they are looking into technical clues suggesting the Lazarus Group created the virus. The ransomware - which encrypts victims' files then demands a fee to unlock them - left Britain's health service crippled as computer systems and phone lines across the country shut down on Friday. The NHS is still struggling to get back on its feet following the attack which means patients could have to wait a month or more to see a doctor after countless operations and appointments were cancelled. Symantec and Kaspersky said code in an earlier version of the WannaCry ransomware had also appeared in other malicious software created by those hackers. The Lazarus Group has already been blamed for a string of hacks dating back to at least 2009 including last year's $81 million heist from Bangladesh's central bank. The global cyber attack brought the NHS to its knees on Friday and over the weekend The group was also thought to have been behind the 2014 hack of Sony Pictures Entertainment that crippled its network for weeks and a long-running campaign against organizations in South Korea. Researchers from Kaspersky said: 'We believe this might hold the key to solve some of the mysteries around this attack. 'We believe its important that other researchers around the world investigate these similarities and attempt to discover more facts about the origin of Wannacry. 'Looking back to the Bangladesh attack in the early days there were very few facts linking them to the Lazarus group. 'In time more evidence appeared and allowed us and others to link them together with high confidence. Further research can be crucial to connecting the dots.' The North Korean mission to the United Nations was not immediately available for comment. The Lazarus Group has repeatedly been linked to North Korea. Pictured is the country's leader Kim Jong-Un During the chaos in Britain over the weekend countless operations were cancelled and patients were turned away as 45 NHS organisations and trusts and hundreds of GP surgeries were locked out of their computer systems. NHS staff pleaded with patients to stay away from A&E except in an emergency and ambulances were diverted away from hospitals struggling to cope with medics facing a weekend of chaos. Meanwhile Russia was believed to be the worst affected country with computers in its interior ministry hit and its second largest phone network - Megafon - also targeted. Ticketing machines and computers at German railway stations have also been affected alongside Spanish companies including telecoms giant Telefonica power firm Iberdrola and utility provider Gas Natural. Shipping company FedEx also confirmed it was hit by the attack. Analysis by Elliptic who have been tracking the Bitcoin accounts linked to the hackers revealed the hackers have been paid around $54000 (41795) in ransom money since Friday. British computer security expert Marcus Hutchins 22 discovered the WannaCry super-virus had a 'kill switch' and stopped it infecting 100000 more PCs worldwide over the weekend British computer security expert Marcus Hutchins 22 became a hero when he discovered the WannaCry super-virus had a 'kill switch' and stopped it infecting 100000 more PCs worldwide over the weekend. Now the cyber criminals who hit more than 225000 victims in 150 countries in the biggest hack ever launched have re-written their malware to remove the flaw discovered by Mr Hutchins. Britain's FBI - the National Crime Agency (NCA) - said people must be prepared for a 'second surge' of malware - but it is yet to happen on the scale seen on Friday. Rob Holmes an expert from cyber security company Proofpoint told the BBC: 'We're already starting to see new versions of the ransomware without the master kill switch'. EarlierRussian President Vladimir Putin blamed US intelligence services for a 'ransomware' attack that has wrecked havoc around the globe. Putin said intelligence services should beware of creating software that can later be used for malicious means. 'As regards the source of these threats I believe that the leadership of Microsoft have announced this plainly that the initial source of the virus is the intelligence services of the United States' Putin said on Monday. 'Once they're let out of the lamp genies of this kind especially those created by intelligence services can later do damage to their authors and creators' he told reporters in Beijing. Putin claimed there was no significant damage to Russian institutions including its banking and healthcare systems from the computer worm. 'But as a whole it is worrying there's nothing good about it it is a source of concern' he said. 'So this question should be discussed immediately on a serious political level and a defence needs to be worked out from such phenomena.' The Russian leader that the Kremlin was not behind the attack.
By Frankie Cordeira Jr.
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