South African port operator Transnet hit by cyber attack

South Africa’s logistics company Transnet SOC has announced that its IT system was hit with a “disruption” that halted operations at the port’s terminals.

The company confirmed that the cyber attack occurred early on Thursday, 22 July and that the source of the problem is being identified.

“Port terminals are operational across the system, with the exception of container terminals as the Navis system on the trucking side has been affected,” Transnet revealed.

The information posted on social media showed that all employees were receiving notifications not to access their emails until further notice.

Moreover, the firm stated that the operations in the Eastern Cape have been halted due to weather conditions and the vessels moving in and out of the ports are being recorded manually.

“Work is underway to reduce downtime to ensure that the impacted systems are up and running again as soon as possible,” according to the statement.

Other parts of the company’s operations, including the freight line, pipeline, engineering, and property divisions, have not been impacted by the ransomware attack.

As of Friday, Transnet’s website is down.

Cyberattacks on ports and terminal operators have increased over the last three years with the number of reported incidents set to reach record volumes by year-end, according to Israeli cybersecurity specialist Naval Dome.