Cyber Stall: Toyota forced to halt domestic production due to suspected cyber attack

Toronto, Ontario — Proving the need for adequate online protection for businesses, Toyota has announced that it will be forced to halt production at its 14 Japanese factories on Tuesday, due a suspected cyber attack suffered by one of the automaker’s plastic parts suppliers.

Toyota says they expect to lose about 13,000 vehicles in output as a result of Thursday’s attack.

As it stands, a potential culprit, motive or connection to Japan’s sanctioning of Russia has yet to be established.

“It is difficult to say whether this has anything to do with Russia before making thorough checks,” Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida told reporters.

Japan joined western allies over the past week to apply sanctions to Russia following its unlawful invasion of Ukraine, as well as committing to providing US$100 million in emergency aid.

This production halt comes amid ongoing supply chain disruptions that are still being worked through since the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic, as well as the unfolding conflict in Ukraine.