ST Engineering’s aerospace subsidiary in the USA has suffered a data breach after being hit by criminal ransomware attack.
The incident at VT San Antonio Aerospace involved a cyber criminal group known as the Maze group gaining unauthorised access to its IT network and launching a ransomware attack. ST Engineering says that investigations are ongoing.
It adds: “At this point, the ongoing investigation indicates that the threat has been contained and is believed to be isolated to a limited part of ST Engineering’s commercial operations in the [USA].”
Singaporean broadsheet The Straits Times, citing cybersecurity firm Cyfirma, reported that hackers extracted about 1.5 terabytes of data from the MRO, which could have been stolen as early as in March.
ST Engineering adds that its IT network in Singapore, where it is headquartered, is not affected by the cyberattack, and that its other businesses are not compromised. It has also stepped up cybersecurity measures within the group, while VT San Antonio Aerospace has began notifying potentially affected customers.
Vice-president of VT San Antonio Aerospace Ed Onwe adds: “As part of this process, we are conducting a rigorous review of the incident and our systems to ensure that the data we are entrusted with remains safe and secure. This includes deploying advanced tools to remediate the intrusion and to restore systems.”
The San Antonio, Texas based MRO was established in 2002, and specialises in aircraft maintenance and overhaul. Its clients include Air Canada and freight giants FedEx and UPS Airlines.
