45-minute cyber attack lost consumer giant £100m

15,000 laptops, 2,000 servers and 500 systems crippled by hackers

A DEVASTATING cyberattack that cost the maker of Durex and Dettol an estimated £100m crippled the company in just 45 minutes and wiped out swathes of its global computer network, its boss has revealed.

Reckitt Benckiser chief executive Rakesh Kapoor laid bare how the Petya ransomware virus rendered 15,000 laptops, 2,000 servers and 500 computer systems unusable in three-quarters of an hour – and the company has still not fully recovered.

The attack last month hit a number of multinationals using Microsoft’s Windows software, with others including advertising firm WPP and Russian oil giant Rosneft.

It threw manufacturing and distribution at Reckitt into disarray and although the company is nearly back at full capacity, some systems are not fully operational.

The devastation highlights the global threat of hackers to big business.

Cyber-security experts have speculated the Petya attack may have been staged to divert attention from a statesponsored sting on Ukraine and its infrastructure.

Speaking as Reckitt published its half- year results, Kapoor said the virus was able to wreak havoc despite his firm’s cyber-security measures, and warned businesses were at risk of becoming ‘collateral damage’ in such attacks.

The 58- year- old told the Mail: ‘It is going to become more common and, I hate to say this, it is going to become more sophisticated.

‘This was not targeted at Reckitt. But it is a bit like going into a public place where something terrible happens, and you are just part of the collateral damage.

‘This took under one hour before it self-destructed – and it could have been worse.

‘Cops and robbers is being played in the world of cybersecurity. you can create defence systems but someone is trying to outdo them.’

Kapoor also paid tribute to staff for ensuring a speedy recovery after the attack amid ‘real concern’ about whether computers could be fixed in time for the company to report its latest results.

Ben Brabyn, chief executive of Canary Wharf technology and cyber- security hub Level39, warned hackers were increasingly targeting multinational companies.

He said: ‘It is hard to overstate the threat posed to business by cyber attackers. It is a fundamental duty of senior executives to secure their systems and customer data.’

Half-year results published by Reckitt yesterday showed profits were £1.02bn, up from £697m during the same period last year.

But sales growth was muted after the collapse of its business in South Korea and a failed Scholl product launch last year, with its difficulties made worse by the cyberattack and a tax in India.

The company also revealed it has put aside £318m to cover potential costs from a US probe into Indivior, the pharmaceuticals business it spun off in 2014.

It has slashed its full-year sales forecast from growth of 3pc to growth of 2pc.