There are many computer attacks that can compromise our network security. They can be used to steal passwords, strain viruses, make a system stop working… It is something that affects both domestic users and large companies and organizations. In this article we are going to talk about what have been most important cyber attacks of recent years and how they could reoccur and put security at risk again.

Major computer attacks

The computer attacks They may have very different objectives, but in many cases the personal data of the users comes into play. Some attacks have used varieties of malware to compromise multiple systems, while others have taken advantage of an existing vulnerability and thus be able to steal information.

WannaCry

Without a doubt one of the most important attacks in recent years was through WannaCry. Specifically, a ransomware and hackers used it to encrypt equipment. Once they infected a system, the attackers asked for a financial rescue in return to re-decrypt the files.

This threat arose in 2017 and used an exploit, known as EternalBlue. Take advantage of a vulnerability in Windows, in the SMB protocol. The Microsoft system has patches to fix that serious bug. The problem is that many teams did not install it on time and even much later they still did not.

On May 12, 2017 a WannaCry wave of attacks all over the world. It is estimated that some 200,000 computer equipment, spread over more than 150 countries, were affected by this problem. It was something that paralyzed many companies and organizations, with what that means economically.

SolarWinds

Another cyber attack in recent years that had a major global impact was the one that affected SolarWinds. What the attackers did was implement malicious code through the Orion tool, which is used to monitor networks. This meant that they could infect networks of many companies and organizations that were using it. Also, it came as an update that was actually malware.

The main problem is that everything was a chain and affected many more organizations. Even the United States government itself. Thousands of companies and organizations used this SolarWinds software. It is calculated that about 30,000 companies they could be affected by this cybersecurity threat.

National security departments or companies such as Microsoft, Intel or Cisco were affected by this problem. Although the reasons for this attack were never clear, it is believed that the objective was to collect customer data and future products from companies, so that we can ask for a ransom to avoid filtering all that.

Attack on Marriott hotels

We must also mention the computer attack suffered by the Marriott hotel chain in 2020. It had a great impact, since the data of some 500 million clients were exposed. In that huge leaked database, attackers were able to obtain data such as the name of the users, address, e-mail, passport or ID number and sometimes also bank card information.

Quickly from Marriott they recommended to all their clients to change passwords and review the payment methods they had used. It is considered one of the largest cyber attacks in history precisely because it has affected such a large number of clients.

These types of attacks not only have a direct impact on affected users, but will indirectly also have an impact on the reputation of a company. In the case of Marriott, when this problem was detected, stocks fell rapidly. That meant millionaire losses, as we can imagine.

Yahoo mass account theft

But if we talk about the number of users affected, Yahoo undoubtedly also suffered another of the most recognized and important cyber attacks in recent years. In this case it took place in 2013 and the theft of data affected no less than 3,000 million accounts and it was a major blow to the company.

Although there were many stolen personal data, later it was verified that the bank details were not leaked. That made this large leak of information have less impact, although logically Yahoo's reputation was affected and the privacy of hundreds of millions of users compromised.

Even today it is still one of the most impactful computer attacks due to the number of accounts affected. It had a great worldwide impact at that time and served as a sample of how personal data on the Internet can leak.

LinkedIn data filtering

Another great data leak was the one that suffered LinkedIn. This occurred more recently, in 2021, and data was leaked from some 700 million users. That represented over 90% of the entire database. The hacker behind the attack used scraping techniques to steal all that information and download the data.

This information ended up on the Dark Web, accessible to anyone. In this case, no personal and confidential data were exposed, although it did contain information such as e-mail, telephone number or social network details. It was also a major blow to this popular online platform.

Can these attacks happen again?

The truth is that computer attacks We have been watching practically since the beginning of the Internet. There have been many data thefts, attacks on companies and organizations of all kinds. Some have had a greater impact than others, but it has always caused great damage to the image of a brand or to the users they affected.

And yes we can say that these attacks can be repeated at any time. We are not referring to the fact that tomorrow there will be another WannaCry attack that puts thousands of companies in check worldwide, but a similar vulnerability can arise, be exploited and again engage the affected teams.

The same could happen with personal data leaks on social networks and platforms like the ones we have seen. At any time there could be a security breach that is exploited by the attackers. There is always a risk that our personal information may get into the wrong hands.

Can users do something to be protected? It is very important to always have everything updated, be it the operating system or any application. We have seen threats like WannaCry take advantage of an uncorrected Windows vulnerability. Therefore, if you have the latest versions installed you can solve certain failures and prevent them from being exploited. In addition, you must always adequately protect your social networks and thus reduce the risk that they may be exploited by hackers and the data will be stolen.