Cyber attack on National Presto Industries caused operational disruptions

U.S. home appliance maker National Presto Industries said it experienced a major data security incident that caused operational disruptions and delivery delays.

 

Headquartered in Eau Claire, Wisconsin, National Presto Industries caters to three business segments - home appliance products, ordnance and ammunition products and a safety department that makes carbon monoxide detectors, fire alarms and fire extinguishers. 

 

In a data security incident notice filed with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission, the appliances maker said that on March 1, it experienced a system outage resulting from a cyber security incident.

Immediately, an investigation was launched, with assistance from external cyber security experts, to determine the nature and scope of the incident.

 

“Upon discovery, the Registrant activated its incident response team, comprised of internal personnel and external cybersecurity experts retained to assist in addressing the incident,” Presto said.

 

“The Registrant is actively conducting a forensic analysis to determine the nature, scope and impact of the incident. At this time, no conclusive evidence has been identified, but the investigation remains ongoing,” it added in the filing.

 

Presto said the data security incident has temporarily impacted its daily operations, including shipping and receiving, some manufacturing processes, and various other back office functions. The company is in the process of restoring the affected systems while its investigation continues.

 

“While the full scope of the impact is not yet known, the incident could have the potential to have a material impact on the Registrant’s financial condition and results of operations. The Registrant is continuing its forensic investigation and analysis to assess the potential impact,” Presto added.

 

At the time of publishing, no known hacker group has claimed responsibility for the ransomware attack on Presto. The company also did not share details on who was behind the cyber attack, how much data was compromised, or whether it has received a ransom demand.