PM confirms no major damage to Israel from recent cyber attack
Netanyahu addresses the worldwide cyber attacks and indicates that Israel only suffered 'minor damage'; stresses Israel's cyber foresight in formidable defensive capabilities.
"Several years ago we established a defense network against cyber attacks. We also had the foresight to establish the National Cyber Defense Authority based on the understanding that we yet face a new threat," Netanyahu said during the cabinet's weekly meeting.
"I can only request one thing from Israel's citizens and Israel's companies—follow the directives of the National Cyber Defense Authority."
Oded Vanunu of Check Point Software Technologies and Dr. Tal Pavel of the Academic College of Tel Aviv-Yaffo explained in an interview with Ynet that a software update that was available in March could have prevented the weekend cyber attack.
According to Vanunu, the attack was a "ransom attack," which contained another element—a cyber weapon developed by the American NSA, which Microsoft had already fixed last March.
However, "once the ransom program runs, it begins to spread on the Web, just like an epidemic. This could have been avoided by software that was already released in March."
Dr. Pavel added that hackers had already leaked some of the 23 tools the NSA uses last August. "Suddenly, tools used at the state level are in everyone's hands, such as a group of hackers apparently acting for money only."
