Just over a month ago, WannaCry ransomware struck a massive blow that circled the globe. Now, as the dust has barely settled from its cyber attack, a new threat from Petya has appeared on the horizon.

Ransomware, a new criminal venture born in this century, invades and takes over computer systems. The owner/controller of a hijacked system is told they must pay the perpetrator, usually in bit coin, a type of digital currency, to regain control of their systems. Businesses and governments, who rely heavily on computerized systems today, are the usual targets of the crime.

It was originally thought that this was a phenomenon limited to the Ukraine, but incidents have been reported in other countries, including France, Spain, Russia, and India. The threat goes well beyond the borders of these countries as more and more of those in positions of power find they cannot access their computers.