[BreachExchange] Clarksons hit by cyber attack

[Audrey McNeil]

https://americanshipper.com/main/news/clarksons-hit-by-
cyber-attack-69845.aspx?source=Little4

London-based shipbroker, research and logistical support firm Clarkson PLC
revealed on Wednesday that it had been the victim of a cybersecurity
attack, potentially resulting in a data leak.

Clarksons said that the incident was responded to and managed as soon as it
was discovered, but initial investigations show that the “unauthorized
access was gained via a single and isolated user account which has now been
disabled.”

The attacker is reportedly going to release some data on Wednesday, said
Clarksons, but the police are involved and lawyers are on standby to take
necessary steps to prevent the spread of confidential information.
Clarksons has also been working with data security specialists to
investigate further and accelerate the roll-out of additional IT security
measures.

“Issues of cybersecurity are at the forefront of many business agendas in
today’s digital and commercial landscape and, despite our extensive efforts
we have suffered this criminal attack," Clarksons CEO Andi Case said in a
statement. "As you would rightly expect, we’re working closely with
specialist police teams and data security experts to do all we can to best
understand the incident and what we can do to protect our clients now and
in the future.

“We hope that, in time, we can share the lessons learned with our clients
to help stop them from becoming victims themselves," he added. "In the
meantime, I hope our clients understand that we would not be held to ransom
by criminals, and I would like to sincerely apologize for any concern this
incident may have understandably raised.”

Earlier this year, ocean carrier Maersk Line and FedEx subsidiary TNT
Expresssuffered a cyber attack, which has led to a wider discussion of
cyber security measures in place in the industry. A subsequent whitepaper
released in October by cyber security consultant CyberKeel found that
"virtually all aspects of the maritime industry are vulnerable to cyber
attacks."

Clarksons said that it has put additional security measures in place to
prevent another attack from occurring in the future, but stated that they
cannot provide any additional comments on the incident as the investigation
is ongoing.
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