National Security Agency (NSA) leaker Edward Snowden, currently living in exile in Russia, issued a tweet on Sunday explaining computer giant Microsoft "officially confirms" Friday's cyberattack was spawned from exploits originally created by the NSA.
The alleged theft of the NSA hacking tools was originally published in April. An article by CNN last month said the NSA's press office did not respond to an email at that time to confirm the information originated at the agency.
Snowden provided a link to an article on Microsoft's blog written by the company's President and Chief Legal Officer Brad Smith where he detailed information about the cyberattack that spread through malicious "Wannacrypt" software on Friday affecting computer users worldwide.
Smith explained the company's vigilance in addressing the problems that affected hospitals, businesses, governments and home computers. The software blocked users from their data unless they paid a ransom thin bitcoin.
The attack started in the U.K. and Spain before spreading to countries around the world. Smith said Microsoft issued a patch in March to protect users against the problem.
However, many users had not kept their operating systems up-to-date, thereby remaining vulnerable to the cyberattack. Smith said Microsoft had a team of 3,500 security engineers as the company was "working comprehensively to address cybersecurity threats."
"As this attack demonstrates, there is no cause for celebration. We'll assess this attack, ask what lessons we can learn, and apply these to strengthen our capabilities. Working through our Microsoft Threat Intelligence Center (MSTIC) and Digital Crimes Unit, we’ll also share what we learn with law enforcement agencies, governments, and other customers around the world," Smith wrote.
© 2025 Newsmax. All rights reserved.