A damaging cyberattack on Japanese beer giant Asahi has halted shipments from its breweries, with no resumption in sight, the company warned on Friday. Asahi Group, producer of Japan’s most popular beers, including its flagship Asahi Super Dry, said it had experienced a system failure due to a cyberattack that forced the suspension of orders and shipments of various beverages.
The company stated that production is not directly affected by the system dysfunction, but it has been halted because shipments are suspended. Asahi is looking into the possibility of a ransomware attack after announcing that its local operations had been hit. A spokesperson for the company said, “No immediate recovery of our system is in sight at the moment. Ordinary shipments remain halted.”
The news is worrying for Japan’s ubiquitous convenience stores, which are major stockists of Asahi beer. A spokesperson for Seven & I Holdings, which operates the 7-11 convenience store chain, said it was preparing to put up notices to warn customers of the suspension. However, the halt has not yet caused major disruptions, and the company does not expect Asahi drinks to disappear from all its stores at once.
Asahi’s shares have fallen almost seven percent from last Friday’s close. The attack comes after a cyberattack halted operations at Jaguar Land Rover’s British factories for almost a month. The Indian-owned automaker said it had been targeted by hackers, severely disrupting sales and production and forcing it to seek emergency funding.
Asahi’s situation is being closely monitored, and the company’s ability to recover from the cyberattack will be crucial in mitigating the impact on its customers and partners. The incident highlights the growing threat of cyberattacks on businesses and the need for robust cybersecurity measures to prevent such disruptions. For now, Asahi’s customers, including Japan’s convenience stores, will have to wait and see when the company’s shipments will resume.
