1:41 p.m Friday May 12th
“Security incident” at ABB – did Black Basta hacker group strike?
A “security incident” has occurred at technology group ABB. This has “direct effects on certain locations and systems,” the company confirmed to CH Media on Friday Online-Portals «Bleeping Computer». According to this, it is a ransomware attack by the Russian hacker group Black Basta. ABB does not comment on this.
As the internationally active, Swiss-Swedish group writes, it has “taken measures to contain the incident that are still ongoing”. In addition, these “led to some business interruptions”. However, the vast majority of systems and factories are now back in operation. The company has not announced whether plants or operating units of ABB in Switzerland are also affected by the incident.
According to “Bleeping Computer”, which is based on insider information from the ABB Group, the attack happened on Sunday. This affects the Windows Active Directory server directory and, as a result, hundreds of devices connected to it. In response, ABB is said to have interrupted the VPN connections to its customers. The aim is to prevent the malware from spreading.
The Russian hacker group Black Basta first appeared in public a year ago. According to the attacks that have become known so far, the gang is concentrating on large providers. ABB employs a good 110,000 people in around 100 countries in Switzerland and around the world. Last year the company generated sales of 29.4 billion US dollars and a profit of 3.3 billion. (sat)