Dole Gets Hit By a Ransomware Attack and Food Shipments Stall
Table of Contents
- By Steven
- Published: Mar 07, 2023
- Last Updated: Mar 09, 2023
Dole PLC is a massive agricultural company headquartered in Dublin, Ireland. Dole has several offices and production facilities in the United States and supplies food products in 75 separate countries. The company maintains a staff of over 38,000 employees and offers more than 300 different products throughout the world. The massive food company was recently the victim of a ransomware attack that caused shortages of some of its premade salad products in different states recently; specific details about data loss and impacted individuals are still being investigated by security experts today.
How Did the Attack Occur?
In early February 2023, Dole was the victim of a large-scale ransomware attack. The food giant suffered serious data losses and had to halt production in some of its locations due to the attack. Customers complained about missing Dole salad kits around the time of the attack, and it's suspected that salad production was impacted negatively by the attack. Dole quickly put a cyber security agency on the case, tasking the experts to close off any vulnerabilities and to mitigate the damage done by the attackers.
What Information Was Viewed or Stolen?
We don't have any details about the specific information that was taken from Dole during the ransomware attack. The company was also unwilling to share whether it paid the hackers to restore its information or not. Dole hired security experts to help with the attack, and if any personal information from Dole customers or employees was stolen, we don't have information about it yet. If any private information, such as Social Security numbers or bank account numbers, is stolen in this attack, Dole will be required to release a statement and inform any individuals involved.
How Did Dole Admit to the Breach?
Dole's Senior Vice President, Emanuel Lazopoulos, admitted to the company being under a cyber attack in the February 10th memo to retailers. This attack has left the company struggling to maintain production and has impacted food deliveries to stores in some areas of the country. CNN put up a story about Dole suffering from a cyberattack in February, and Dole later confirmed that it suffered from a ransomware attack.
What Will Become of the Stolen Information?
We suspect the main objective of the cyberattack on Dole was to halt production and to get the company to pay a ransom. If any delicate information is stolen, the hackers will likely sell it, trade it, or try and use it for fraudulent activities themselves.
What Should Affected Parties Do in the Aftermath of the Breach?
We don't yet know of any individuals that were exposed by the Dole data breach. If you have reason to believe your information was compromised and you are at risk due to this attack, you should take immediate steps to protect your information. Watch your financial accounts, monitor your credit, and if anything odd occurs on your credit, consider putting a freeze on your account. Dole will send out statements to any individuals it suspects have been exposed to this attack after a complete cyber security investigation is finished.
