Toyota has suspended domestic factory operations after a suspected cyber attack. According to an article on Reuters, Toyota is set to suspend domestic factory operations. This will cost them around 13,000 cars of output, after a supplier of plastic parts and electronic components was hit by a suspected cyber attack.
The attack comes just after Japan joined Western allies in clamping down on Russia after it invaded Ukraine, although it was not clear if the attack was at all related. There is no information available at this time of who was behind the motive.
Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida noted that his government would investigate the incident and whether Russia was involved.
“It is difficult to say whether this has anything to do with Russia before making thorough checks,” he told reporters.
The supplier Kojima Industries Corp spokesperson said it appeared to have been the victim of some kind of cyber attack. Toyota described it as a “supplier system failure.”
This is not the first time Toyota has experienced a cyber attack. State actors have launched cyberattacks on Japanese corporations in the past, including an attack on Sony Corp (6758.T) in 2014, which exposed internal data and shut down computer systems.
There is no word for how long the shutdown will be. 14 plants in Japan, which account for about a third of its global production will be shut down as of tomorrow.
Some plants operated by Toyota’s affiliates Hino Motors and Daihatsu are included in the shutdown.
Toyota has been tackling the supply chain disruptions around the world caused by the COVID pandemic, which has forced it and other carmakers to curb output.
The car company also saw some production stopped in North America due to parts shortages caused by the Canadian trucker protests.