Cyber Attack on HMM
Another shipping company was involved in the cyber-attack: this time, the South Korean company HMM confirmed a virus attack on its mail system on June 12th today. According to HMM, most of the confirmed damage has been repaired, and no information or data loss or leaks have been found.
https://bit.ly/3ALhN4M
What's A Cyber Attack?
A cyberattack is an assault launched by cybercriminals using one or more computers against a single or multiple computers or networks. It can maliciously disable computers, steal data, or use a breached computer as a launch point for other attacks, it can cause a huge loses to company in terms of data lost and the money given in form of ransom. The data lost, is sold on dark web websites sometimes for as low a dollar!
What's HMM?
HMM Co. Ltd. formerly known as Hyundai Merchant Marine, is a South Korean container transportation and shipping company. It transports the largest portion of South Korea's exports, making it the number one Korean national carrier.
Back to the Point
In an unidentified security breach on the 12th of June, HMM was hit with a major cyber-attack, limiting their access to Outlook services in certain areas. On the 15th of June they released an update which said…
An unidentified security vulnerability has been discovered that has restricted access to the Outlook mail system in certain areas.
The carrier recommended shippers in the regions still affected contact with their local HMM agency offices via telephone for bookings and other enquiries.
Except for e-mail, the system and functions are functioning normally due to the cloud-based system of an independent organization, confirm their email system is gradually being rebuilt, and their IT planning team is continuing to investigate to prevent further security breaches.
The operator added, that they will “implement enhanced security controls and take protective measures.” A contact from HMM Europe confirmed Loadstar said this morning that their core systems were not fully affected and that the attack except for some non-standard mail server problems, it has no effect on the adoption of books. He added that their emails are basically being restored, and they’re working towards Europe. It’s ugly, but so far, their network resilience looks good.
HMM joins other major carriers in becoming the target of cybercriminals. The attack comes at a hard time for the carrier, that is functioning to deal with continued demand for extra capacity, particularly on routes to the United States. HMM declared that it absolutely was adding its 26th extra loader since the start of the surge in volumes which it expects to control four temporary vessels this month to produce extra capacity. HMM stated that there are still capacity limitations in the market, and they are currently in a situation where it is almost impossible to put more container ships on the leasing market. The company’s reports on shortages of ships on other routes have also been used as temporary ships to increase capacity.
Staying Safe Online
Nowadays several companies and firms are being hit cyberattacks causing loses in millions, the main contributing factor to this is the pandemic causing several employees to be heavily dependent on their company's servers. A huge chunk of the global population is illiterate in terms of cybersecurity, causing their data to be vulnerable to the weakest of attacks.
Here are few tips to keep yourself safe online:
- Activate 2FA [2 Factor Authentication] wherever possible, popular platforms such as Instagram & Twitter offers means to secure your account using this method.
- Change your passwords frequently, passwords aren’t meant to last forever.
- If you see any phishing websites stay out of it and report it so that others can stay safe.
Hope you liked this article, Stay tuned for more!
Stay Safe & Stay Healthy!
