JLR attack 'most economically damaging cyber event to hit the UK'
Experts say it could take months for production to return to normal
A major cyber attack on Jaguar Land Rover has been named the most damaging event of its kind to hit the UK, causing an estimated £1.9 billion pounds in financial losses.
The Cyber Monitoring Centre says the attack in late August halted production for weeks at JLR’s main plants, disrupted supply chains, and affected more than five thousand organisations across the country.
Experts say it could take months for production to return to normal, with the impact also being felt by dealerships and local businesses.
The Centre is urging businesses and the government to strengthen their defences against similar threats.
The Technical Committee have the following recommendations for boards, manufacturers, government, insurers and other organisations:
- Recognise that operational disruption poses the biggest cyber risk for most businesses
- Strengthen IT/OT resilience
- Map supply chain dependencies
- Evaluate cyber insurance coverage
- Begin work to define government support parameters
CMC researchers admit their estimates are based on assumptions about the hack as JLR has not said publicly what type of cyber attack it's dealing with.
The CMC also says it has not factored in any potential ransom payment that JLR might have paid to hackers which could be in the tens of millions.