NATO considered military response to WannaCry

Posted on Monday, February 03 2020 @ 12:14 CET by Thomas De Maesschalck
At last week's International Cybersecurity Forum (FIC) in Lille, France, Germany's top cybergeneral revealed that military alliance NATO could have reacted with force against the WannaCry ransomware outbreak.

Nearly three years ago, many businesses and half of the UK's National Health Service (NHS) were affected by this ransomware attack. Major General Juergen Setzer, the Bundeswehr's chief information security officer, explained at FIC that at the time, there were discussions about a possible joint NATO response. Setzer also mentioned that such a response could be disproportionate:
The German army officer said this supported the idea that military thresholds for responding to hacking attacks should be deliberately vague, adding that just because someone hacks you doesn't restrict you to only hacking them as a response.

He said: "If we are talking about this special domain [of cyberspace], then if you go with military means, as an answer, the threshold doesn't mean you have to answer in the same domain. It's the risk of the opponent, what is your answer if you decide [an attack on a computer network] is above the threshold?"
The real question is probably who or what they wanted to target. The WannaCry attack is believed to have been the work of the Lazarus Group, which allegedly has ties to North Korea. Full details The Register


About the Author

Thomas De Maesschalck

Thomas has been messing with computer since early childhood and firmly believes the Internet is the best thing since sliced bread. Enjoys playing with new tech, is fascinated by science, and passionate about financial markets. When not behind a computer, he can be found with running shoes on or lifting heavy weights in the weight room.



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