Americold Network Breach: Cold Storage and Logistics Giant Faces IT Issues

Americold, a major cold storage and logistics company, suffered a network breach on Tuesday night, resulting in IT issues that have affected its operations, according to reports from customers and employees.

While the company claims to have contained the attack, it has also shut down its network to prevent any potential risk to customers or non-contained areas.

Americold is currently investigating the incident and estimating that its systems will remain down until at least mid-next week.

Impact on Deliveries

In response to the breach, Americold has asked customers to cancel all inbound deliveries past next week and to reschedule non-critical outbounds.

The company has requested that critical outbounds be limited to products that have the potential to reach an expiration date.

Potential Ransomware Attack

Americold has not yet released an official statement on the incident or provided any attack details to customers. However, the company’s focus on rebuilding impacted systems and assessing data recovery suggests that a ransomware attack may be the cause.

This would not be the first time the company has been targeted, as it suffered a similar attack in November 2020.

About Americold

Americold is a global company that owns and operates 245 temperature-controlled warehouses across North America, Europe, Asia-Pacific, and South America.

With almost 17,000 employees worldwide, it is one of the largest cold storage and logistics companies in the world.

Previous Cyberattack

In November 2020, Americold was hit by a cyberattack that also impacted its operations. The attack affected phone systems, email, inventory management, and order fulfillment.

While multiple sources claimed that the attack was a ransomware attack, the company did not confirm this, and the identity of the attackers remains unknown.

Americold Response

Americold has apologized to its customers for the inconvenience caused by the breach and requested their cooperation as it works to resolve the issue. The company has also assured its customers that it has deployed an incident response team to handle the situation.

The incident is a reminder of the increasing risk of cyberattacks, particularly for companies that rely heavily on technology.

As the number of cyberattacks continues to rise, companies must ensure that they have robust security measures in place to protect their networks and systems from unauthorized access.

The recent network breach at Americold has raised concerns about the security of the company’s systems and the impact of cyberattacks on the cold storage and logistics industry.

As the investigation continues, it is essential that Americold and other companies in the industry take proactive steps to protect themselves from future attacks and minimize the risk of disruption to their operations and customers.