Cyber Attack Strikes British Electronics Firm Volex

Volex, the British manufacturer of critical power and data transmission, has confirmed that hackers compromised company data after gaining access to its internal systems.

The AIM-listed electronics firm said on Monday morning that the incident had resulted in unauthorised access to certain IT systems and data, but it was not expecting any “material” financial hit from the attack. 

“The group enacted its established IT protocols and tools immediate steps to stop unauthorised access to its systems and data, Volex said in a statement to investors. 

"Specialist, third party consultants have been engaged to investigate the nature and extent of the incident, and to implement the incident response plan.”

Volex produces power cords, plugs, connectors, electric vehicle charging components, consumer cable harnesses and power products, data centre power cables, high-speed copper interconnect cables and more.

It has production in Eastern Europe and across Asia and generated more than £720 million ($879 million) in revenue in the year to April 2 2023. It said that all of these manufacturing locations remain operational thanks to its swift response to the breach. 

“All sites remain operational, with minimal disruption to global production levels, and the Group continues to trade with its customers and suppliers. At this stage, any financial impact resulting from the incident is not expected to be material.” 

Financial dive 

While Volex states its response following the attack prevented any material impact, shares in the firm still plunged by 4 per cent following today’s warning. 

Simon Chassar, CRO at Claroty, says this demonstrates that no company is safe from the financial ramifications of a cyber attack – even with effective security procedures in place. 

“The cyberattack on Volex is proof that even with effective measures in place, the financial ramifications can still be felt,” said Mr Chassar. 

With the decline in the company’s shares by over 4%, imagine how much worse the situation could have been if Volex hadn’t dealt with this incident effectively and efficiently. Attacks such as this can result in global supply chains going down and months-long production delay, further impacting a company’s reputation and finances.

Despite the drop in valuation, Javvad Malik, lead security awareness advocate at KnowBe4, described Volex’s response to the breach as “commendable”.

“Engaging third-party specialist consultants to assess the extent of the damage is a prudent step,” Mr Malik said. 

Read our Top 10 operational technology (OT) security vendors for 2023.

“The involvement of these experts will be instrumental in understanding the scope of the incident, identifying vulnerabilities, and formulating an effective incident response plan.”

Volex said it will provide further updates on the situation in due course. Its specialists will also deliver an incident response plan for the 131-year-old company, which has remained operational in all its 27 manufacturing locations across 24 countries.

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