Japanese electric car manufacturer Nidec confirms major cyber attack on internal systems

Japanese electric car manufacturer Nidec said that the data security it suffered earlier this year compromised confidential company data.

 

In a data security incident notice posted on its website, Nidec said that August 5, it was contacted by a hacker group who claimed to have infiltrated its internal network and stole confidential documents and files. The hacker group later demanded a ransom payment, threatening to leak the stolen data if Nidec didn’t comply.

 

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

 

“We began consulting with external experts immediately after this incident occurred, and after our own investigation, we confirmed that some of the information held by the NPCV was posted on a website presented by an external criminal group as having posted samples,” Nidec said. NPCV is Nidec’s subsidiary based in Vietnam.

 

Nidec said the security incident compromised more than 50,000 data records, including NPCV internal documents, letters from suppliers, documents related to green procurement, occupational health and safety and policies (operations, supply chain, etc.), transaction documents (order forms, invoices, receipts), contracts, etc.

 

In a separate update, Nidec said that its investigation revealed that the threat actors used illegally obtained user ID and password of NPCV’s general domain account and gained access to the company’s network.

 

“As an interim measure, all Group companies have conducted full scans of all devices, reset passwords, and reviewed server access rights. At the NPCV, we have decided to suspend operation of the VPN device that is thought to be the source of the intrusion until sufficient measures can be taken,” it said.

 

On June 3, the 8BASE ransomware group claimed responsibility for the cyber attack on Nidec and listed it as a victim on its data leak site. After a failed ransom negotiation, the group published the stolen data on June 6.

 

A month later, the Everest ransomware group, known for acquiring stolen data from other hacker groups and blackmailing organisations, demanded a ransom payment from Nidec. After the company refused to pay the hacker group, Everest published the data.

 

 

“We will continue to consult with external security specialists and lawyers to strengthen our security systems, re-educate our employees, and take other measures to prevent recurrence, in order to create an environment in which our business partners can feel safe and trusted,” Nidec added.