Computer systems at energy firm RasGas have been taken offline by a computer virus only days after a similar attack on oil giant Aramco.

The attacks come as security experts warn of efforts by malicious hackers to target the oil and energy industry.

The attack forced the Qatar-based RasGas firm to shut down its website and email systems.

RasGas, one of the world’s largest producers of liquid petroleum gas, said production was not hit by the attack.

The company said it spotted the “unknown virus” earlier this week and took desktop computers, email and web servers offline as it cleaned up.

The report comes only days after Saudi Arabia’s Aramco revealed it had completed a clean-up operation after a virus knocked out 30,000 of its computers. The cyber- assault on Aramco also only hit desktop computers rather than operational plant and machinery.

Both attacks come in the wake of alerts issued by security firms about a virus called “Shamoon” or “Disstrack” that specifically targets companies in the oil and energy sectors. [More…]