Queen’s University computer security researcher Thomas Dean can talk about the cyber attack against South Korea that has shut down many bank machines and several media outlets. Many officials are blaming North Korea.

Dr. Dean, an electrical and computer engineering professor, says it appears the virus is designed to destroy and disrupt operations and not to steal information.

“This is the first wide-spread civilian cyber attack. Previous attacks have been very targeted, such as the Stuxnet attack on Iranian nuclear facilities allegedly done by Israel,” says Dr. Dean.

Please note that Dr. Dean is available after 2:30 pm on Wednesday, March 20.

To arrange an interview, please contact communication officers Michael Onesi (office: 613.533.6000 ext. 77513, michael.onesi@queensu.ca) or Anne Craig (office: 613-533-2877, Anne.Craig@queensu.ca) at Queen’s University News and Media Services Department in Kingston, Ont., Canada.

Follow Queen’s News and Media Services on Twitter: http://twitter.com/QueensuMedia

Attention broadcasters: Queen’s has facilities to provide broadcast quality audio and video feeds. For television interviews, we can provide a live, real-time double ender from Kingston via fibre optic cable. Please call for details.