A fast-moving wave of cyberattacks swept the globe Friday, apparently exploiting a flaw exposed in documents leaked from the US National Security Agency. The attacks -- which experts said affected dozens of countries -- used a technique known as ransomware that locks users' files unless they pay the attackers a designated sum in the virtual currency Bitcoin. Affected by the onslaught were computer networks at hospitals in Britain, Russia's interior ministry, the Spanish telecom giant Telefonica and the US delivery firm FedEx and many other organizations.



More...