Kiev — Several multinational companies said Tuesday they were targeted in a massive wave of cyber attacks which started in Russia and Ukraine before spreading to western Europe, India and the US. Danish sea transport company Maersk, British advertising giant WPP and the French industrial group Saint-Gobain were among those who said they came under attack and put protection protocols in place to avoid data loss. US drug giant Merck confirmed on Tuesday it has become the first American company hit by a global cyber attack. The first reports of trouble came from Ukrainian banks, Kiev’s main airport and Russia’s Rosneft oil giant, in a major incident reminiscent of the recent WannaCry virus. IT experts identified the virus as "Petrwrap", a modified version of the Petya ransomware which hit last year and demanded money from victims in exchange for the return of their data. It also recalled a ransomware outbreak last month which hit more than 150 countries and a total of more than 200,00...
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