Mar 02 (Nikkei) - Toyota Motor has halted operations at all 14 of its Japanese plants due to a cyberattack on one of its suppliers.
Unlike many of its competitors, the world's largest automaker has mostly dodged the impact of the global semiconductor shortage thanks to its procurement strength, but a ransomware takeover at one of its major suppliers has forced the company to suspend operations for an extended period.
The cyberattack hit Kojima Industries, based in the city of Toyota in Aichi Prefecture. Kojima mainly produces plastic auto parts. With sales of only 174.5 billion yen ($1.5 billion) for its fiscal year ended December 2020, it is a small company compared to major suppliers such as Denso, which has sales of about 5 trillion yen. However, Toyota is Kojima's only customer of note.
Toyota cannot keep its assembly lines running without Kojima's parts for seats and other vehicle components.
Kojima has had close ties with Toyota since the 1930s and has long held an executive position in Kyohokai, an association of more than 200 Toyota suppliers. The company's management is fully aware of its importance as a supplier and has ensured that over 80% of its staff have had in-house training on information security.
It is still unclear who targeted the company and why. ...continue reading
Source: ANNnewsCH
