Jury out on North Korea link to ransomware attack

A photo taken on May 15, 2017 shows staff monitoring the spread of ransomware cyber-attacks at the Korea Internet and Security Agency (KISA) in Seoul More cyberattacks could be in the pipeline after the global havoc caused by the Wannacry ransomware, a South Korean cybersecurity expert warned May 16 as fingers pointed at the North. More than 200,000 computers in 150 countries were hit by the ransom cyberattack, described as the largest ever of its kind, over the weekend. / AFP PHOTO / YONHAP / YONHAP / REPUBLIC OF KOREA OUT NO ARCHIVES RESTRICTED TO SUBSCRIPTION USE

WASHINGTON: Was North Korea behind the ransomware epidemic that hit global computer networks earlier this month? 

That’s the subject of heated debate in cybersecurity circles after analysts found similarities in the “WannaCry” worm to other malware attributed to North Korea, including the 2014 hack of Sony Pictures and a cyberheist of millions of dollars from the Bangladesh central bank.