• News
  • Security
  • Products
  • About Seqrite
Seqrite Blog Blog
  • News
  • Security
  • Products
  • About Seqrite
Home  /  Uncategorized  /  How one computer ended up corrupting an entire company
Cyber Attack
08 June 2017

How one computer ended up corrupting an entire company

Written by Seqrite
Seqrite
Uncategorized
Estimated reading time: 3 minutes

2012 witnessed one of its kind cyber-attack where a single infected computer led to a massive wipe out of data from 35000 computers. It all happened at Saudi Aramco, a leading petroleum and natural gas company. Let’s look in detail of what happened.

It was August 15th, 2012, when suddenly the computers at Saudi Aramco started behaving weird. Files started disappearing and many computers just shut down on their own. Within a matter of hours, the virus, later known as Shamoon or Disttrack, had spread across the organization impacting almost 35000 machines most of which underwent either partial or total irreparable damage. Shamoon is a self-replicating virus that deletes data from a computer’s hard drive making it unusable.  Such widespread was the impact of the virus that Aramco technicians had to physically remove cables from all servers and unplug the entire system from the Internet.

In a couple of hours, they were cut off from the rest of the world and it impacted their business in such a manner that the company had to go back to three-decade-old technology of using typewriters and faxes. They had to temporarily stop selling oil in domestic market and later give it out for free. Further, they had to spend a huge amount of money to procure almost 50000 new hard drives to get back to their business. While the drilling and pumping worked fine, most other operations were crippled. A group called “Cutting Sword of Justice” claimed responsibility of the attack and it is believed that they were never caught or identified. It took them almost two weeks to restore their services and about five months to get back a secure network and a larger cyber security team to protect them in future.

And do you know how it all happened?

Because one computer technician, opened a wrong email and clicked a wrong link! That is all it took for attackers to get into the system and cause massive destruction to the entire company’s system in no time. Well, that was Aramco’s story. Experts say that had it been any smaller firm, it would have become bankrupt with this type of an attack.

None of the organizations in today’s world are safe from cyber-attacks. In fact, the rate at which cyber attacks occur and the complexity of such attacks are only increasing by the day. It is thus important for organizations whether small, medium or large, to make sure their systems and networks always stay protected against such threats with the help of latest technology in the market. Organizations are vulnerable to cyber-threats and if a robust cyber security strategy backed up by equally strong tools is not in place, you are at a very high risk that can be not just damaging but devastating for your business.  So, a simple word of caution, don’t cut corners in ensuring cyber-security for your organization. You never know where the next attack is coming from.

Seqrite, the enterprise arm of Quick Heal, was formed specially to provide sturdy solutions to SMEs and larger enterprises. Our products simplify the security needs of companies with Endpoint Security, Server Security and Gateway Security solutions. Seqrite products can secure your desktop, laptop and all handheld devices. Our security solutions include the best of antivirus, firewall and web-filters clubbed together in a power packed solution. Additionally, Seqrite offers services like Real-time monitoring, SOC Operations, Technical Audit, Compliance Audit, Security Management and Consulting, Investigation and Forensics.

Connect with us today, to see how we can help your organization stay safe!

Experience the best-in-class solutions offered by Seqrite

seqrite_cta1

 Previous PostDealing with Evolving Cyber Attacks
Next Post  Cyber Security – Do Manufacturing Firms Need to Bother?
Seqrite
About Seqrite

Follow us for the latest updates and insights related to security for enterprise networks. Subscribe to our newsletter to stay...

Articles by Seqrite »

Related Posts

  • Gorgon APT fractures India’s Industrial Backbone

    Gorgon APT targeting MSME sector in India

    August 10, 2020
  • Way Out of The MAZE: A Quick Guide For Defending Against Maze Ransomware

    May 21, 2020
  • The-need-for-businesses-to-empower-the-CISO

    Why do boards need to empower their CISO?

    October 22, 2019

No Comments

Leave a Reply.Your email address will not be published.

Cancel reply

CAPTCHA Image
Refresh Image

Popular Posts

  • Turn the Page: Cybersecurity Predictions for 2021 & beyond Turn the Page: Cybersecurity Predictions for 2021 & beyond February 18, 2021
  • The Data breach inferno burning big-ticket businesses The Data breach inferno burning big-ticket businesses February 5, 2021
  • Pharma Sector needs to streamline its insides to avoid cyberattacks Pharma Sector needs to streamline its insides to avoid cyberattacks February 12, 2021

Featured Authors

  • Seqrite
    Seqrite

    Follow us for the latest updates and insights related to security for...

    Read more..
  • Viraj Talikotkar
    Viraj Talikotkar

    Viraj is a Lead Technical Writer at Quick Heal Technologies. He is always on...

    Read more..
  • Sanjay Katkar
    Sanjay Katkar

    Sanjay Katkar is the Joint Managing Director and Chief Technology Officer of...

    Read more..

Latest Posts

  • Businesses now worried about the surge in COVID-19 infodemic

    Businesses now worried about the surge in COVID-19 infodemic

    February 26, 2021
  • Turn the Page: Cybersecurity Predictions for 2021 & beyond

    Turn the Page: Cybersecurity Predictions for 2021 & beyond

    February 18, 2021
  • Pharma Sector needs to streamline its insides to avoid cyberattacks

    Pharma Sector needs to streamline its insides to avoid cyberattacks

    February 12, 2021

Stay Updated!

Topics

Antivirus For Linux (10) apt (9) BYOD (9) COVID-19 (10) Cyber-attack (31) cyber-attacks (56) cyberattacks (12) Cybersecurity (279) cyber security (25) Cyber threat (29) cyber threats (44) Data (11) data breach (50) data breaches (27) data loss (28) data loss prevention (33) data protection (21) data security (13) DLP (49) Encryption (16) endpoint security (102) Enterprise security (14) EPS (9) Exploit (12) firewall (11) hackers (9) IoT (10) malware (58) malware attack (22) malware attacks (12) MDM (25) mobile device management (9) Network security (18) Patch Management (12) phishing (16) Ransomware (56) ransomware attack (29) ransomware attacks (30) ransomware protection (12) Seqrite (24) Seqrite Encryption (27) Seqrite EPS (33) Seqrite Services (16) UTM (34) Vulnerability (10)

Products

  • Endpoint Security (EPS)
  • Seqrite Encryption Manager
  • Seqrite Endpoint Security Cloud
  • Cloud Security
  • Seqrite mSuite
  • Seqrite MobiSMART
  • Unified Threat Management
  • Seqrite Secure Web Gateway
  • Antivirus for Server
  • Antivirus for Linux

Resources

  • White Papers
  • Datasheets
  • Threat Reports
  • Manuals
  • Case Studies

About Us

  • Company Overview
  • Leadership
  • Why choose SEQRITE?
  • Awards & Certifications
  • Newsroom

Archives

  • By Date
  • By Category

© 2020 Quick Heal Technologies Ltd. (Formerly Known as Quick Heal Technologies Pvt. Ltd.) Cookie Policies Privacy Policies

Our website uses cookies. Cookies enable us to provide the best experience possible and help us understand how visitors use our website.
By browsing this website, you agree to our cookie policy.