(NewsSpace.com) – In this day and age, nobody is immune from the whims of an individual or group of hackers. All businesses must take security precautions to mitigate the risk of a breach. One company became a target this week and it threw US dealerships across the country into chaos.
On Tuesday, hackers targeted CDK Global, a software company with a program that helps automotive dealerships manage their sales and services. CDK had to shut down most of its systems while it addressed the breach “out of an abundance of caution and concern for [its] customers,” leaving dealerships in the lurch. Approximately 15,000 locations throughout the US were unable to make sales. Group 1 Automotive, General Motors, and US Holman are all CDK clients that were affected by the cyber attack.
The software company was able to get back up and running by Wednesday afternoon, but soon suffered a subsequent attack that prompted yet another shutdown. A spokesperson for CDK said the company was “assessing the impact and providing regular updates” to its clients. It was also diligently working to get its systems online as quickly as possible, though it couldn’t provide a timeframe and noted that its “dealers’ systems will not be available likely for several days.”
Findlay Automotive Group, which operates in several Western states, said it was also recently affected by a cyber attack. The company “identified a cybersecurity issue” and immediately began investigating the source. During this time, it is also experiencing issues with making sales and conducting services and has asked those who need assistance to call the service department or visit the dealership closest to them.
Dealerships have been a target because they often hold a lot of sensitive customer information, including financial data and personal data, that could make it easy to steal identities or wreak havoc on an individual’s life.
Copyright 2024, NewsSpace.com
