How Russia faced the WannaCry ransomware that scared the world
From the archive (2017): Russia’s unusual answer to the ransomware that stopped companies around the world for days.
From the archive: first published in Arabic on mohamedsharaf.net in May 2017. Translated into English in 2026.
The ransomware that spread recently has frightened the world, especially after the damage it did to whole sectors and companies, some of which stopped working for days. Every country has its own way of facing threats like this, which will never end. So what did Russia do against this latest ransomware?
Russia did something stranger than fiction. Can you imagine Russia calling in a priest to face the virus that terrified the world?
The Patriarch of the Russian Orthodox Church was invited, and he sprinkled “holy water” on the servers to protect them from the ransomware.
Do you think it will protect them from this frightening virus, or will they soon be paying 300 dollars to decrypt their files?
It is worth noting that in Russia there is no separation between church and state. The Orthodox Church is one of the country’s most important institutions and has a close relationship with the Russian government, and its leader, Patriarch Kirill of Moscow, works closely with President Vladimir Putin on matters of state.
Source and photos of the story: Catholic World Report, “Russians fight ransomware virus with holy water”, 16 May 2017.