Molson Coors Beverage Company (Molson Coors) recently disclosed that it suffered a cyberattack that forced its beer production to come to a screeching halt...
Molson Coors Cyberattack Results in Systems Outage
Molson Coors disclosed the cyberattack in a filing with the US Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). According to the 8-K filing, the incident, which caused a “systems outage,” occurred on March 11, 2021. In the wake of the cyberattack, Molson Coors “engaged leading forensic information technology firms and legal counsel to assist the Company’s investigation into the incident,” the filing stated.
“The company is working around the clock to get its systems back up as quickly as possible,” the company said in its filing. “Although the company is actively managing this cybersecurity incident, it has caused and may continue to cause a delay or disruption to parts of the company’s business, including its brewery operations, production and shipments.”
Food and Beverage Industry Has Unique Cyber Risks
As we have discussed in prior articles, cybercrime has increased dramatically during the COVID-19 pandemic, impacting businesses in all sectors. The food and beverage industry is no exception—Brown-Forman, which owns Jack Daniel’s; Lion, an Australian alcoholic beverage company; and Italy’s Licya Campari Group all fell victim in the past year.
Ransomware attacks are becoming increasingly common in the food and beverage industry as cybercriminals discover they can score large paydays by disrupting the critical business operations of large industrial companies. While Molson Coors has not yet disclosed the nature of its cyber incident, many security experts suspect it fell victim to ransomware.
According to a recent report by Claroty, an industrial cybersecurity company, the food and agriculture sector experienced a fifty-six percent (56%) increase in industrial control system (ICS) vulnerabilities from 2019 to 2020. “Given the round-the-clock nature of operations in food and beverage companies, much of the IT equipment in manufacturing plants can’t be patched frequently, making these assets a prime target for attacks such as ransomware, which can seize up operations abruptly with a dramatic cost to the enterprise,” Grant Geyer, Claroty’s Chief Product Officer, told Industry Week.
As cyber risks increase, continuous threat monitoring of all IT systems is essential. Businesses should also ensure that operating systems, software, and firmware are patched as soon as manufacturers release updates. Employees can also play a critical role in combatting cyberattacks, often thwarting an attack before it takes down your systems. However, as ransomware attacks become more sophisticated, workers need to be trained on the latest threats. For instance, while ransomware attacks initially relied on email messages that were clearly identifiable as spam, hackers are now using phishing schemes that make emails appear to come from a known contact.
With prevention as the goal, businesses should also plan for an inevitable attack. Because it can take time to recover from a cyberattack and restore normal operations, it’s important to plan for the possibility of critical information systems being inaccessible for an extended period of time. Creating, maintaining, and exercising a basic cyber incident response plan can help businesses recover more quickly, as everyone involved knows their role and can immediately start to “work the plan” to regain normal business operations.
Business continuity plans are also invaluable. While many plans address how to continue critical business operations in the face of a flood, power disruption, or other disaster, cyberattacks are not always addressed. A good starting point is to determine all the potential threats to your business operations posed by a cyberattack, rank the severity of each business disruption, and devise a plan to address each risk.
Key Takeaway
As Molson Coors learned the hard way, a cyberattack can significantly disrupt production and distribution. Since it is not always possible to thwart an attack, it is essential to have policies and procedures in place to get systems back up and running as quickly as possible. Food and beverage companies should use this latest incident as motivation to thoroughly review their cybersecurity and business continuity plans to ensure they address current and emerging risks.
If you have questions, please contact us
If you have any questions or if you would like to discuss the matter further, please contact me, Corey LaBrutto, or the Scarinci Hollenbeck attorney with whom you work, at 201-896-4100.
What Business Owners Get Wrong Before Meeting a Litigation Attorney
What should you expect when meeting a litigation attorney about a business dispute? You should expect to describe the dispute in your own words, hand over the most important documents, flag any deadlines or immediate threats, and leave with a clearer picture of the problem, what information is still needed, and the likely next steps. […]
Arbitration vs. Litigation vs. Mediation: What New Jersey Businesses Should Know Before Signing a Contract
Arbitration resolves disputes privately before an arbitrator whose decision is usually final, while litigation resolves them in court with full rights of appeal. Whether a business ends up in arbitration or litigation is often decided when it signs the contract, long before any dispute arises. Key Takeaways When facing a contract dispute, carefully consider your […]
Can You Own Part of a New Jersey Business Without a Written Agreement?
Can you own part of a business in New Jersey without a written agreement? Yes, it is possible. Under New Jersey’s Uniform Partnership Act, a partnership can arise when two or more people carry on a business as co-owners for profit, whether or not they ever intended to form one. Ownership doesn’t necessarily depend on […]
Crisis-Proofing Your New Jersey Business: Building a Crisis Response Plan Before You Need One
For New Jersey businesses, crisis preparedness should be viewed as a legal and operational function, not simply an emergency-management exercise. A well-designed crisis response plan can help preserve evidence, protect confidential communications, meet reporting obligations, limit unnecessary exposure, and prevent an already difficult situation from becoming a larger legal problem. Key Takeaways A serious crisis […]
Monmouth County's Next Development Wave: What Developers and Investors Need to Know
Monmouth County is entering a significant new phase of development. For those looking to acquire property or undertake a new project, understanding the market opportunity is only the beginning. The more important question is whether a particular property can actually be developed as contemplated and what approvals, agreements, and other conditions will be required to […]
Are Your Conversations with AI Shielded from Discovery? Courts Are Split
Whether a client’s prompts to a generative AI tool and the documents it produces are protected from disclosure depends on the case type, who claims protection, and whether counsel was involved. In United States v. Heppner, a New York federal judge ruled that a criminal defendant’s communications with an AI platform were protected by neither […]
No Aspect of the advertisement has been approved by the Supreme Court. Results may vary depending on your particular facts and legal circumstances.
Sign up to get the latest from our attorneys!
Explore What Matters Most to You.
Consider subscribing to our Firm Insights mailing list by clicking the button below so you can keep up to date with the firm`s latest articles covering various legal topics.
Stay informed and inspired with the latest updates, insights, and events from Scarinci Hollenbeck. Our resource library provides valuable content across a range of categories to keep you connected and ahead of the curve.
Let`s get in touch!
Sign up to get the latest from the Scarinci Hollenbeck, LLC attorneys!
