CYBERSECURITY EXPERT: BE VIGILANT,

Cybersecurity expert Gary Miliefsky of Snoopwall joined Herald Radio’s Morning Meeting yesterday to talk about the global ransomware attack and other threats.

Q: How big of a deal is it? A: Well, this all gets back to why are there cyberweapons of warfare leaking out on the internet.

The NSA made a tool for espionage and it got leaked out by a group of hackers called The Shadow Brokers ... and then somebody turned it into malware. They took this worm, and they attached it to ransomware, and they made a ransom worm.

Q: So it’s using our country’s own weapons against us and against the world?

A: Correct. And there should be a moratorium on this kind of thing ... cyberwarfare has been going on for a while, but it hadn’t affected hospitals yet, like it had over the weekend. And people can’t be operated on in that hospital in England until the problem is resolved. That’s a serious matter.

Q: If they had updated their software, would there have been an attack?

A: Well, the attack would have failed. But it has to be kicked off. The catalyst is someone clicking a link or downloading an attachment in an email, which is how all ransomware starts, through spear-phishing. But this one is unique in that it then propagates by looking for holes in Windows nearby ... so it’s very innovative.

Q: What is the takeaway? Should people religiously update their software? Would that have helped?

A: Do daily backups, be cautious about downloading attachments. If you do daily backups and encrypt important information before it is stolen, then you’re safe.

Q: What is the first thing people should do now to try to protect themselves?

A: Go to Microsoft Windows, update and get the latest version of Windows everything ... make sure your anti-virus is up to date, make sure your firewall is up to date. ... So when you get an email from a friend or someone you trust, just hit the forward button ... is it really from your friend? Because when you forward it, it shows you who it is really from. They might be masking their real address.

If it’s not your friend’s email after you hit forward, delete that email. That’s got to have ransomware attached to it, or something bad.

Q: What does this say about local governments’, businesses’ and banks’ security of information?

A: They’re not vigilant enough, they’re reactive. And people are trusting ... it happens everywhere.