The healthcare industry is the most affected by a strain of malware known as the Gatak Trojan, according to Symantec, a data security firm.
The new malware can lie undetected for extended periods, and also is capable of extending to other computers on a network in many cases, the company reveals.
In a just released blog posting, Symantec reported that healthcare organizations comprise 40 percent of Gatak victims. The automotive, construction, education and gambling industries each account for 5 percent of victims, with another 40 percent unclassified.