The advice comes mainly because more than 60% of the 2.25 lakh ATMs in India run on an outdated version of Windows XP.
Wannacry ransomware has been creating a ruckus all over the world and has been termed as the world’s biggest ransomware attack. In an effort to avoid the bug from having a large-scale effect in India, the Reserve Bank of India has suggested that the ATMs in the country should remain shut till software updated against the bug. The Indian government has announced red alert against this ransomware and is asking people to take the necessary at their end, and banks have been asked to take the necessary steps to prevent the cyber attack from reaching India. WannaCry malware: What is Wanna Decryptor ransomware, how it works and how to protect against cyber attack.
The Indian government has been taking steps to reduce the effect of this bug in the Indian market and RBI has asked the banks to operate their ATM networks after getting the Windows update to be protected from the malware impacting systems. The government of India also held a webinar spreading awareness about Wannacry ransomware and educated people on how to protect their devices against the bug. MeitY reaches out to RBI, others against Wanna Cry ransomware.
The ATM machines mostly run on a Windows software and are extremely vulnerable to the cyber attack. The advice comes mainly because more than 60% of the 2.25 lakh ATMs in India run on an out dated version of Windows XP. A special update to beat the bug is being released by Microsoft, and all bank ATMs are being asked to make the ATMs operational after getting the operation system update. However, ATM operators are assuring people that there is no issue in using ATMs are there is no data stored in the machine.
WannaCry ransomware program is targeting Microsoft’s Windows operating system which takes control of the computer by hacking into the systems. The hackers who take control of the devices ask users to make payments to get the access back. The payments are made in the form of bitcoins and range from Rs. 19,000 and Rs. 38,000. The targets of this attack include British NHS, International shipper FedEx, Telefonica and others.