The WannaCry cyber attack has dented the reputations of organisations including the UK National Health Service, Telefónica of Spain and the US National Security Agency, which may have invented part of the software. For one company, though, it is working out better.
Microsoft, which owns the targeted operating system, would have had to pay millions for comparably useful publicity. True, 200,000 computers running Windows were affected, with hard drives encrypted and demands for bitcoin ransoms on computer screens. But the world’s biggest software maker has seized on the advantages.
Not only did Brad Smith, Microsoft’s president and chief legal officer, take the opportunity to tell customers to update software, but he took a shot at the NSA and governments with which technology companies have tussled over privacy and security. It was a masterclass in pursuing Microsoft’s interests while invoking a noble mission.