by Lauren Reynolds and Daniel Gauthier, who are focused on cybersecurity and privacy issues “I’m reading a lot about companies getting locked out of information and asked to pay a ransom, what can I do about this and what should I do if this happens to me?” Recent ransomware attacks illustrate the prevalence and dangers of cybercrime. Ransomware is a …

By Brian X. Chen | The New York Times A decade-old form of malicious software known as ransomware has been making headlines after cybercriminals hijacked hundreds of thousands of computers worldwide. Ransomware, which is often transmitted by email or web pop-ups, involves locking up people’s data and threatening to destroy it if a ransom is not paid. The global cyberattack …

By Alina Selyukh | NPR By latest counts, more than 200,000 computers in some 150 countries have been hit by a cyberattack using ransomware called WannaCry or WannaCrypt, which locked the data and demanded payment in bitcoin. The malware was stopped by a young U.K. researcher’s lucky discovery of a kill switch, but not before it caused hospitals to divert patients and factories to shut …

By Steve Lohr and Liz Alderman | The New York Times On Sunday, union representatives for a Renault auto plant in France received text messages from the management: Tell the workers to stay home the next day. The company was still dealing with the fallout from a global hack that hit thousands of businesses and the factory would be shut. …

By Brian Fung | The Washington Post Security experts are bracing for more fallout from Friday’s worldwide WannaCry ransomware attack, which has so far affected more than 150 countries and major businesses and organizations, including FedEx, Renault and Britain’s National Health Service. But if you’re just hearing about this attack — or waking up to an unresponsive computer of your own — here’s what …