The world’s Largest Meat Supplier Pauses Processing After IT Systems Hit with Ransomware Attack – One-Fifth of US Beef Production Wiped Out

JBS, the world’s largest beef supplier was hit with a ransomware attack on Sunday, threatening US meat supply.

One-fifth of US beef production was wiped out after JBS paused processing at five of its biggest beef plants which manage a total of 22,500 cattle per day.

NBC News reported:Sunday’s cyberattack on JBS comes just weeks after ransomware hackers shut down the Colonial Pipeline, creating gas lines and shortages.

At least six JBS locations in the U.S. posted on their respective Facebook pages for workers to not come in Tuesday, an NBC review of their posts found.

One such post, from JBS’s beef processing plant in Grand Island, Nebraska, wrote: “Team member: This weekend our company was the target of a cyberattack that has impacted our IT systems. As a result, we will not operate tomorrow. ONLY MAINTENANCE AND SHIPPING ARE SCHEDULED TO WORK.”

White House Principal Deputy Press Secretary Karine Jean-Pierre told reporters the hackers are likely based in Russia – *highly questionablel* 

“The White House has offered assistance to JBS, and our team, and the Department of Agriculture, have spoken to their leadership several times in the last day,” Jean-Pierre said. “JBS notified the administration that the ransom demand came from a criminal organization, likely based in Russia. The White House is engaging directly with the Russian government on this matter, and delivering the message that responsible states do not harbor ransomware criminals.”

Interesting that the hackers are keying in on the 2 industries that are already being targeted for destruction.