JBS paid hackers Us$11mil after cyberattack

COLORADO: JBS USA said it paid Us$11mil (Rm45.29mil) in ransom to the criminals responsible for the cyberattack that disrupted operations across North America and Australia, the latest high-profile example of large corporations falling prey to extortion.

“This was a very difficult decision to make for our company and for me personally,” JBS USA chief executive officer Andre Nogueira said in a statement.

“However, we felt this decision had to be made to prevent any potential risk for our customers.”

A spokesperson for JBS Brazil said the ransom payment was made in bitcoin.

A White House National Security Council spokesperson said Wednesday night that “private companies should not pay ransom.

It encourages and enriches these malicious actors, continues the cycle of these attacks, and there is no guarantee companies get their data back.”

The spokesperson, who did not mention JBS, reiterated calls for more cooperation between the government and the private sector to deter ransomware attacks and for companies to “put in place the cybersecurity defenses to meet the threat.”

The cyberattack on May 30 forced the Sao Paulo-based meat giant to shut down all of its beef plants in the US, accounting for almost a quarter of American supplies.

It also halted slaughter operations across Australia and idled one of Canada’s largest beef plants. The FBI has attributed the incident to Revil, a hacking group that researchers say has links to Russia.

The global shutdowns alarmed the agricultural industry and raised concerns about food security as hackers increasingly target critical infrastructure.

Operations have returned to normal levels and the company expected lost production to be fully recovered by the end of this week.

Dow Jones had earlier reported the JBS ransom payment.