FBI joins German law enforcement probe into the Continental data breach

German automotive supplier Continental has roped in the U.S. Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) to investigate a major cybersecurity incident it suffered in August this year.

Earlier this month, the tyre and automotive parts manufacturer confirmed that a cyber attack targeting its IT systems in August resulted in certain data being stolen from its databases. The cyber attack involved threat actors infiltrating the company’s internal network.

As soon as the company discovered the unauthorised access, it took immediate steps to mitigate its impact.

“Continental’s business activities have not been affected at any point. The technology company maintains full control over its IT systems. According to current information, the IT systems of third parties have not been affected,” Continental said in a notice published on August 24.

Continental launched an investigation with assistance from third-party cybersecurity experts to understand the scope of the cyber attack. Also, relevant authorities, including the Federal Office for Information Security (BSI), were informed about the security incident.

According to the German daily Handelsblatt, the German security authorities have now brought in the U.S. Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) to help with its investigation into the cyber attack. The local newspaper, however, said that both Continental and the FBI have declined to comment on recent developments around the cyber attack investigation.

Earlier, the German daily reported that the LockBit ransomware gang claimed responsibility for the cyber attack on the German tyre and automotive parts manufacturer and has stolen around 40 TB of data from Continental’s database.

In fact, the Lockbit ransomware gang also published details of negotiations between the company and its representatives on a dark web forum. The ransomware gang also threatened to publish the stolen data unless its ransom demand is met.

The Lockbit ransomware gang later put up the stolen data for sale on the Dark Web for about $50 million as the company “apparently did not want to pay a ransom.”