Bridgestone Corporation Hit by Ransomware Attack
Despite what some might think given the name, Bridgestone Corporation is a Japanese corporation, founded and headquartered in Japan. What you may also not know about it is that one of its subsidiaries became the latest victim of a ransomware attack.
On Friday, March 18, 2022, Bridgestone reported that one of its American subsidiaries has been successfully targeted with ransomware. The incident caused a network-wide shutdown in the affected facility and a stalling of production lines that goes with it.
Ransomware attack leads to plant shutdown
The impact of the attack was so significant that Bridgestone's manufacturing facilities located in America had to be halted for nearly a week.
This attack is particularly meaningful because it marks the third consecutive hit in a short span of time, targeting subsidiaries or suppliers that work with Toyota. Asia's biggest car manufacturer suffered supply chain setbacks after two previous attacks caused disruption in the facilities of other suppliers. First came the attack on Kojima Industries - a parts supplier working with Toyota. Just a few days later came the attack on Denso - another Toyota supplier.
The attack on Bridgestone took place in the last days of February. As it happens, an employee discovered suspicious activity and a potential security issue that turned very real.
Lockbit gang claims to be behind the attack
Bridgestone doesn't believe this to be a "targeted" attack. The Lockbit ransomware gang claimed responsibility for the attack. The hackers behaved as usual - infiltrated systems had chunks of data stolen from them for possible future blackmail.
While the top-level companies likely boast more formidable security, it seems hackers and threat actors are skirting the fringes, trying to hit smaller suppliers who may not have the IT security resources of Toyota at the top level.
The attacks targeting Toyota began a very short while after Japan announced its stance, joining the banking sanctions imposed on Russia by the US and the western allies.
