Do You Believe Us Now?

A while ago, we blogged about the real threat hackers posed and yet we heard nothing back.  We warned you then that simply grabbing data or shutting down a service provider was not the true threat.  We tried to explain that cities and regions would be put under ransom demands – eventually leading to banks and nations.

Nobody believed us.

Today, reality has finally started to set in as an entire county in North Carolina has been exploited and hackers are demanding ransom in order to restore that county’s systems.  For the people of Mecklenburg County, North Carolina this reality is a critical slap in the face and a lesson is how far behind we are these days.

This frightening news, broadcasting a dangerous new stage in the evolution of organized hacking, coincides with the Comast announcement of Wi-Fi directed to bringing even more unprotected devices online as fast as possible.  I wonder if the folks in Mecklenburg County will be switching to Comcast anytime soon.

This first largescale ransomware (not really – see Sacramento and the Covina City police department – but the first one that makes money) occurred at the same time that we learned that most healthcare facilities are completely unprepared for hackers.

Seriously folks, how much more will it take before people realize a) current security does not work and b) we need to find a better solution ASAP?!?