Foxconn Becomes the Victim of Ransomware Attack

A ransomware attack has impacted an electronic manufacturer, Foxconn, very badly. This attack was directed at the Mexican facility of the company. This company is the manufacturer of popular brands including Innolux, Apple, Sharp, Belkin, FIH Mobile. Foxconn is the largest electronic manufacturer with total revenue in 2019 of $172 billion. Around 800,000 workers are being employed by Foxconn globally. 

According to the security expert, the latest series of cyber-related attacks is being directed at the manufacturers. Manufacturers are the biggest target for cybercriminals. Manufacturers should be aware of these crimes as they are building digital systems and are connected to IoT environments. These risks related to OT are real and can cause major damages to the companies. 

Andrea Carcano, Co-founder of Nozomi Networks talks to Industry Week stating,
“Successful attacks such as DoppelPaymer demonstrate that extorting large organizations can be much more profitable than attacking unsuspecting individuals. The DoppelPaymer ransomware made headlines last year after attacking and extorting various large organizations. Targeted ransomware like DoppelPaymer, BitPaymer, SamSam, Ryuk, and others attack large businesses because this tactic can be much more profitable than attacking unsuspecting individuals. Disruption to a company’s operations can be costly, which is something that threat actors leverage in their attempts to force victims to pay the requested ransom,”

Ransomware can also be a threat to the General Data Protection Regulation. If the companies refuse to pay, the data files are made public records. Experts say that attackers are becoming more and more sophisticated and targeting big names in the industry. Organizations need to start taking measures now and improve their security to get rid of these data breach attacks. International regulations must take these into account and strategize against these cybercriminals in order to completely eliminate these attacks.