London: A leading computer security company has said that it has discovered one of the most sophisticated pieces ofmalicious software ever seen that has been used against a range of targets around the world for six years.
Symantec said that the sophistication of the software,Regin, indicated that the bug was developed by a nation-state as a cyber-espionage tool. It added that it has been used to spy on government organisations, businesses and private individuals and is capable of performing functions like, capture screenshots, steal passwords or recover deleted files.
Experts said that computer systems in Russia, Saudi Arabia and Ireland have been hit most.
They also said that the creators must have taken months to develop the bug and have gone to great lengths to cover their tracks.
Sian John, a security strategist at Symantec, said that the software looked like it came from a Western organization.