Bridgestone America, a company that has its headquarters in Japan, was hit by a cyber attack recently leading to shut down of its tyre manufacturing facilities operating in Illinois, Iowa, North Carolina, South Carolina and Tennessee, along with a facility from Canada.
Highly placed sources state that the company was hit by the incident on Sunday and since then no worker was being allowed into the facility as the management has seized all operations for forensic investigation.
On March 3rd,2022, only the staff working for departments such as maintenance, warehouse, Banbury/Receiving and MRC Lab were called in for a night shift.
As the incident is being investigated, the extent of losses incurred from the digital disruption is yet to be estimated.
Now, to those who are unaware of the latest developments, here’s a gist. In April 2020, because of the COVID-19 Pandemic, Bridgestone America announced to restart its North America tire plant to fill the vacuum between demand and supply. And with the latest cyber attack induced shutdown, tire dealers across the world selling the said brand tyres may face trouble in keeping their product inventories live.
Note 1- Bridgestone has been an official sponsor for Formula One Team after 2010 alongside Pirelli brand. It’s also into the production of aluminum wheel rims and automotive parts, such as vibration free engine mounts and air springs for trucks and carriages.
Note 2- Unconfirmed sources claim the incident as a ransomware attack.
