ROME (Reuters) - Thousands of computer servers around the world have been targeted by a malware attack, Italy's national cyber security agency said on Sunday, warning organizations to take action to protect their systems.
Roberto Baldoni, director general of the agency, told Reuters the attack was aimed at exploiting a software vulnerability and was widespread. The Italian news agency ANSA quoted the cyber security agency as saying that servers in other European countries such as France and Finland were hacked, as well as in the United States and Canada.
Dozens of Italian organizations were likely affected by this attack. Telecom Italia customers reported internet problems earlier on Sunday, but this is not believed to be linked to the attack reported by the agency.
US cybersecurity officials said they were assessing the impact of the reported incidents.
"We are working with our public and private partners to assess the impacts of these reported incidents and provide assistance when needed," the US Cyber and Infrastructure Security Agency said.