Coca-Cola suspended production at its Fairlife dairy after a ransomware attack
Quick Answer
Coca-Cola has suspended operations at its Fairlife dairy subsidiary following a ransomware attack that compromised production systems.
Quick Take
The attack has temporarily halted Fairlife's production across the U.S., although Canadian operations remain unaffected. The incident highlights the significant risks ransomware poses to food and beverage companies.
Key Points
- Coca-Cola disclosed the ransomware attack to the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission.
- Fairlife's U.S. production operations are temporarily suspended due to the cyberattack.
- The Fairlife brand is projected to generate $4 billion in sales by 2024.
- Previous ransomware incidents in the industry caused weeks-long production disruptions.
- Coca-Cola has not provided a timeline for restoring Fairlife's systems.
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U.S. beverage maker Coca-Cola said one of its dairy subsidiaries was hacked and that it’s shutting down its operations for the foreseeable future. The multinational giant said in a disclosure with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission that its Fairlife dairy company was hit by ransomware and that its production systems are affected. The company said that its Fairlife production operations across the United States are “temporarily suspended.”
Fairlife’s operations in Canada are unaffected.
Coca-Cola is one of the largest companies in the world, with products spanning carbonated drinks, water, and dairy products. Its Fairlife dairy is one of the company’s major brands, with an estimated $4 billion in sales by 2024.
Ransomware attacks on food and beverage companies can have lasting effects. Past incidents at Arizona Beverages in 2019 and food distributor giant UNFI last year resulted in weeks-long disruptions to their respective production lines and empty grocery shelves.
Coca-Cola didn’t say when Fairlife’s systems would be restored.
Do you know about the cyberattack at Fairlife? Do you work at the company? We would love to hear from you. From a non-work device, you can securely contact Zack Whittaker on the Signal messaging app with the username zackwhittaker.1337.
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