Beware: Next Ransomware Attacks Could Be Worse Than WannaCry

Just like the sun is going to rise tomorrow, hackers are going to pounce on new victims through the use of sophisticated malware. In the recent weeks, WannaCry Ransomware has made the headlines in its attack on hundreds of thousands of computers around the world. As suspected, computer security experts are confident that there will be a new attack on the horizon that will be worse than WannaCry.

The purpose of ransomware in its recent forms is to extort money from computer users through the encryption of files and a promise to restore those files by demands of a ransom payment. While ransomware has reached hundreds of countries around the world, threats like WannaCry have become sophisticated to the point to do the same with just one infection. The cunning abilities of the hackers behind WannaCry are apparent as it is a threat to leverage a vulnerability developed by the National Security Agency (NSA). With such knowledge of WannaCry, there is suspect that future ransomware will be even more creative and have a wider attack matrix that proves to be much worse than the WannaCry attack.

To add insult to injury, hackers who create ransomware will have an easier task as time progresses due to the number of devices and computers they can attack. Everything is becoming some form of a computer nowadays, from your refrigerator and SmartTV, to your car and traffic lights, there are countless devices that can be potentially attacked in some form by nifty hackers.

Next Ransomware Attack Being Worse Than WannaCry is a Fundamental Certainty

The idea that the next ransomware attack will be much worse than WannaCry isn't just a theoretical idea. In fact, researchers have already demonstrated ransomware attacks against certain devices outside the realm of the typical personal computer. There have been Internet-connected thermostats attacked with specialized ransomware in addition to smartphones and robust systems located at many companies.

Probably the most interesting part about the likelihood of the next wave of destructive ransomware being much worse than WannaCry is hackers don't have to come up with all of the ideas or programming on their own. As it turns out, the CIA and other governments or intelligence agencies actively create tools to target internet-enabled devices, such as smartphones.

Hackers are also inclined to take advantage of tools that have already been proven to effectively attack computers on massive scales, such as the recent discovery of WannaCry utilizing The Murai botnet, which is a collection of hundreds of thousands of infected PCs instructed to carry out malicious activities over the Internet.

What remains to be scary is the fact that we are all vulnerable and the next ransomware attack could prove how vulnerable we are - and didn't know it or take the proper precautionary measures. We cannot allow hackers to threaten us and take our computers for ransom continually. It's our proactive actions and education that may save the day, at least for some of us.