BREAKING: Major Cyberattack, Ransomware Hit UK National Health Service, Britain Hospitals

"A number of NHS organisations have reported to NHS Digital that they have been affected by a ransomware attack.

The investigation is at an early stage but we believe the malware variant is Wanna Decryptor.

This attack was not specifically targeted at the NHS and is affecting organisations from across a range of sectors.

At this stage we do not have any evidence that patient data has been accessed.

NHS Digital is working closely with the National Cyber Security Centre, the Department of Health and NHS England to support affected organisations and ensure patient safety is protected.

Our focus is on supporting organisations to manage the incident swiftly and decisively, but we will continue to communicate with NHS colleagues and will share more information as it becomes available."

"Wanna Decryptor is a so-called encryption-based ransomware also known as WannaCry or WCRY, Travis Farral, director of security strategy for Anomali told WIRED. It encrypts users files using AES and RSA encryption ciphers meaning the hackers can directly decrypt system files using a unique decryption key.

In previous Wanna Decryptor attacks, victims have been sent ransom notes with “instructions” in the form of !Please Read Me!.txt files, linking to ways of contacting the hackers. Wanna Decryptor changes the computer's wallpaper with messages asking the victim to download the decryptor from Dropbox before demanding hundreds in bitcoin to work."

• Spanish and Portuguese companies, including Telefónica, Spain’s largest telecom operator, experienced a similar attack.
• Reports of ransomware attacks have hit Italy and Ukraine. It was not immediately clear if the attacks were coordinated or related.