Clorox Experiences Significant Financial Loss Stemming From Recent Cyber Attack

Clorox Financial Loss Cyber Attack American global manufacturer of cleaning products Clorox stated that recent sales and profit loss were related to a cyber attack.

In a statement from Clorox's press release, "As previously disclosed, the Company believes the cybersecurity attack has been contained and the Company is making progress in restoring its systems and operations. The available information does not confirm whether the Clorox cyber attack was a ransomware incident.

On Sept. 25, Clorox began the process of transitioning back to automated order processing and the vast majority of orders are now taking place in an automated manner, which is enabling the Company to ramp up output and shipments to rebuild retailer inventories. Clorox expects the process of restocking retailer inventories will occur over time as it ships above consumption levels."

The cyber attack occurred in August, 2023. A month later, Clorox stated that the cyber attack was still disrupting production. Now we're moving into Q4 and the company is still experiencing production issues, and a potential production impact could continue into 2024.

Unfortunately the numbers prove this to be true with net sales for their bleach and cleaning products decreasing from 23% to 28%. The Wall Street Journal also reported that Clorox spent $25 million to date in response to the attack, including forensic investigators, legal and technology. That cost is expected to increase into 2024.

The cybercriminal group Scattered Spider, a hacking group specializing in targeting call centers and IT help desks using social engineering tactics, is reported to be the culprit of the Clorox attack. This same group is reported to be behind the recent MGM hack as well. MGM is stating a similar issue to Clorox that the cyber attack could have an impact on the company's finances for the foreseeable future.

So what can we learn from these recent cyber attack examples? Organization require end-user security training. New-school security awareness training is the only way to teach your users how to spot and report any malicious activity. Remember - your users are the last line of defense. Make sure they are prepared to stop any cyber attack that comes their way so then your organization is not at risk of losing profits!

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