Jaguar Land Rover (JLR) has announced that its UK manufacturing facilities will remain shuttered until next week following a cyber attack that occurred late last month.
Production was suspended at the Solihull, Halewood, and Wolverhampton plants, with employees sent home after the breach was detected on September 1.
The automaker, which typically produces 1,000 vehicles daily, acknowledged that some data had been compromised, though the extent of the impact on customers, suppliers, or JLR itself remains under investigation.
Staff have been instructed to stay home until at least Wednesday, resulting in the loss of over two weeks of global production output.
In response to the cyber attack, JLR proactively shut down its IT networks to mitigate potential damage.
However, the interconnected nature of modern factories and supply chains meant the production lines were forced to halt as a consequence.
Dealerships have encountered difficulties in selling vehicles during what is typically a peak sales period, and service garages experienced initial challenges in procuring necessary parts.
While workarounds have been implemented to alleviate the situation, disruptions persist.
JLR’s suppliers have also been significantly affected by the cyber incident.
On Wednesday, the company, a subsidiary of India’s Tata Motors, conceded that data may have been accessed or stolen by unauthorized third parties.
In a statement, the automaker said: “As a result of our ongoing investigation, we now believe that some data has been affected, and we are informing the relevant regulators.
“Our forensic investigation continues at pace, and we will contact anyone as appropriate if we find that their data has been impacted.”
A group identifying itself as Scattered Lapsus$ Hunters, previously linked to cyber attacks on UK retailers such as M&S earlier in the year, has claimed responsibility for the JLR breach.
The M&S incident disrupted operations for several months, hindering online orders and costing the retailer an estimated £300 million.
Last week, the Information Commissioner’s Office confirmed to the BBC that JLR had reported the incident to the UK’s data protection authority.
Business Minister Chris Bryant held a meeting with JLR’s Chief Executive, Adrian Mardell, on Thursday morning, and the Department of Business and Trade is reportedly maintaining daily contact with the company.
On Tuesday, Bryant informed Members of Parliament that the National Cyber Security Centre, a division of the intelligence agency GCHQ, has been assisting JLR since the initial stages of the incident.
Local Members of Parliament are scheduled to receive a briefing from the company during an online call on Friday.
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