Computer systems at private companies and public organisations were attacked globally on Friday. More than 75,000 computers have been affected in 99 countries, cybersecurity firm Avast says.
But neither the Government’s National Cyber Security Centre (NCSC) nor the National Computer Emergency Response Team have received any reports Kiwis were targeted.
The malware holds data ransom while hackers demand payment to restore access.
The NCSC and Computer Emergency Response Team are monitoring the situation, which is believed to have used a phishing email with a malicious attachment or link to penetrate the Windows operating system.
The malware is known as WannaCry, Wana DecryptOr, WannaCryptor or WCRY, and uses the file extension .wcry.
NZ Tech chief executive Graeme Muller urged people to avoid suspicious emails, keep computers up to date and ensure the Microsoft patch released in March is installed.
‘‘If you do get attacked, disconnect from any network you are on to prevent it attacking someone else,’’ Mr Muller said.
