UK looks into how JLR cyber attack is impacting wider supply chain

The United Kingdom government is working with Jaguar Land Rover (JLR) to understand how its cyber attack, which stopped production three weeks ago, is impacting the wider supply chain, according to Automotive News Europe. 

“The government, including government cyber experts, are in contact with the company to support the task of restoring production operations, and are working closely with JLR to understand any impacts on the supply chain,” Automotive News Europe reports the government and the SMMT industry body said in a joint statement on Sept. 19.

JLR told suppliers that production will resume Sept. 24, at the earliest, after a recent cyber attack, but sources have told BBC that disruption could last into November. 

“We have taken this decision as our forensic investigation of the cyber incident continues, and as we consider the different stages of the controlled restart of our global operations, which will take time,” states a Sept. 16 JLR notification. “We are very sorry for the continued disruption this incident is causing, and we will continue to update as the investigation progresses.”

BBC reports the company has dismissed reports that the operational impact could last weeks or months. 

“But concerns are growing about the impact of the stoppage on the carmaker’s extensive supply chain, amid claims some companies could face bankruptcy without prompt financial support,” the article says. 

Even once production lines have restarted, it could take several weeks to get back to normal output, BBC says. 

Jason Richards, West Midlands regional officer at Unite the Union, told BBC that suppliers are having discussions on potential redundancies. 

“We need to have a supply chain into Jaguar Land Rover,” Richards said. “I can’t emphasise it enough [because] if they turn the tap on and they’re expecting the supply chain to be waiting on the subs bench, they won’t be there.” 

Automotive News Europe reported that German company Eberspächer suspended production at its Nitra, Slovakia, plant after the cyber attack. The company produces exhaust systems for JLR. 

Hollen, a car parts quality assurance supplier, has also implemented restrictions due to the shutdown, Automotive News Europe says. 

“Nervousness is growing about what will happen next,” Hollen CEO Tomas Osusky said. “Several subcontractors have had to significantly scale back production depending on how strongly they are tied to Jaguar.”

The Telegraph reported soon after the shutdown that repairers across JLR’s franchised dealership network, as well as independent dealers, were facing difficulties when using the company’s diagnostic systems and electronic parts catalogue. 

It reported that the systems were also down, making it difficult to complete repairs on Range Rover Discovery and Defender vehicles, as well as Jaguar sports cars. 

“It means drivers who need urgent work face an uncertain wait, with the disruption also likely to create knock-on delays even when the crisis has been resolved,” the article says. 

Paul Myers, of Land Rover parts supplier Britpart, told the Telegraph that global shipments of JLR parts had essentially ground to a halt because of the cyber attack, with the company unable to send or receive orders. 

“We’ve still got substantial stocks of parts and we can distribute with our own transport network, but it is restricting the ability of workshops to fix the cars,” he said in the article. I’ve spoken to an awful lot of our customers and everybody’s frustrated — not with Land Rover, but with the clowns behind this attack.”

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