Bridgestone Acknowledges Cyberattack Disrupting Manufacturing Operations

Bridgestone Americas has confirmed that it is responding to a cyberattack that disrupted operations at several of its manufacturing facilities this week. In a statement, the company asserted that the incident has been contained and that business is now operating normally, although a full investigation into the breach is ongoing. Bridgestone acknowledged identifying a “limited cyber incident” that impacted its production capabilities. The disruption directly affected plant workers, particularly at the company’s two plants in Aiken County, South Carolina, where employees were given the option to stay on-site for preventive maintenance with full pay or go home without pay. While Bridgestone characterises the incident as “limited,” local officials, including Pierre-Luc Bellerose, Mayor of Joliette, Quebec, suggest it may have impacted all of the company’s factories in North America.

Bridgestone has reassured stakeholders regarding data security, stating that it does not believe any customer data was affected by the incident. Mayor Bellerose echoed this sentiment, confirming that no information has been compromised for employees or customers. This incident marks the second significant cybersecurity challenge for Bridgestone in recent years, following a ransomware attack in 2022 attributed to the LockBit hacking group. As the forensic investigation continues, the exact nature of this new cyber incident and its full impact remain under review. Bridgestone Americas reiterated that it is “continuing its investigation” while maintaining that business operations are proceeding as usual. 

Categories: Cybersecurity Incident, Manufacturing Disruption, Data Security 

Tags: Bridgestone, Cyberattack, Manufacturing, Operations, Investigation, Data Security, Production, Forensic Analysis, Ransomware, North America