01 October 2019

Cyberattack on Rheinmetall technology group

According to an official statement by Rheinmetall Group, a major German manufacturer of military equipment, weapons, and automotive systems and components, on the evening of September 24, the IT infrastructure of Rheinmetall Automotive plants in Brazil, Mexico, and the USA was affected by malware attacks.

Rheinmetall Automotive specializes in manufacturing automotive components. The attacks caused significant disruptions of the industrial process at the division’s manufacturing plants. The infrastructure of other Rheinmetall Group divisions and companies was not affected.

To date, the company has not provided any further details of the incident. Specifically, it has not been disclosed which malware was used in the attack.

According to the company’s estimates, it could take the Rheinmetall Group 2 to 4 weeks to mitigate the consequences of the infection and restore the affected systems’ normal operation, while the company’s losses could amount to €3 mln – €4 mln per week.

Source: Rheinmetall Group