The US government cyber security experts have warned that the adapted versions of the Stuxnet virus could cripple power, water and other vital services of the West.
The Department of Homeland Security of US said that the Stuxnet code is in the wild and that it could be adapted.
The US Department of Homeland Security told a congressional committee that the malicious software, widely dubbed as "the world’s first cyberweapon", was available for attackers to modify for new targets.
The Stuxnet virus was originally developed to disrupt Iran’s nuclear programme.
Analysis by computer security experts showed it exploited no fewer than four previously unknown vulnerabilities in Microsoft Windows to take over industrial control systems, making it more sophisticated than any virus seen before.
Once inside a Windows systems, the self-replicating code looks for connections to Siemens industrial control systems exploiting more vulnerabilities in the Siemens’ own operating system to make clandestine adjustments to industrial processes.
Stuxnet targeted industrial control systems sold by Siemens that are widely used around the globe to manage everything from nuclear power generators and chemical factories to water distribution systems and pharmaceuticals plants.
