Virtual terror: Ransomware attack in the US foregrounds the need to better protect key infrastructure May 11, 2021, 7:39 AM IST
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An unauthorised software code has crippled a key channel of oil supply in the east coast of the US. Colonial Pipeline, an energy company, was forced to shut down a 5,500-mile pipeline after the discovery of ransomware in its system. It needed a declaration of an emergency by the federal government to keep up supply through an alternative route. The incident forcefully brings home cybersecurity risks that have increased significantly in the wake of digitalisation.