Cyber crime can hobble businesses in myriad ways, from hacking to ransomware and beyond. A company doesn’t even have to be the target for its operations to be affected. Seattle-based logistics and freight-forwarding company Expeditors International of Washington, Inc. reported this week that on February 20, it was the subject of a targeted cyber-attack.
Upon discovering the incident, Expeditors, with approximate gross revenues of $10 billion, 350 locations and more than 18,000 employees, shut down most of its operating systems globally to manage the safety of its overall global systems environment.
In a statement, the company said, “The situation is evolving, and we are working with global cybersecurity experts to manage the situation. While our systems are shut down, we will have limited ability to conduct operations, including but not limited to arranging for shipments of freight or managing customs and distribution activities for our customers’ shipments.
“The security of our systems, minimizing the impacts on our customers, and providing our customers with timely and accurate information are our highest priorities. We are conducting a thorough investigation to ensure that our systems are restored both promptly and securely, and on a parallel track, evaluating ways with our carriers and service providers to mitigate the impact of this event on our customers.”
The company noted that it was incurring expenses relating to the cyber-attack to investigate and remediate the matter and expected to continue to incur expenses due to the issue into the future. Expeditors also warned that depending on the length of the shutdown of its operations, the cyber-attack could have a material adverse impact on its business, revenues, results of operations and reputation.
