Telefonica among Spanish companies hit by cyber attacks

Spanish telecoms giant Telefonica was among the companies targeted Credit: AP

A number of Spanish companies, including communications giant Telefonica, have been targeted in ransomware attacks, the Spanish government has said.

The cyber attacks come as the NHS fell victim to malicious software engineered to encrypt files and demand payment in return for unlocking them.

It was not immediately clear how many companies were affected, but the Spanish government said that attacks had not disrupted services or networks.

Chema Alonso, Telefonica's chief data officer, said on Twitter: "News [of the attack] has been exaggerated and our colleagues are working on it right now."

Spain said the attacks were carried out with a version of WannaCry ransomware, which targets the Microsoft's Windows operating system.

Portugal Telecom was also hit by a cyber attack but no services were impacted, a spokeswoman for the company said.