The company’s manufacturing operations had been suspended since June 10 due to the attack on its business systems.
A company spokesman has declined to comment on the attack and said no further information would be available. The company has declined to answer questions about how many workers were affected or whether workers would be paid for time missed. The origin and nature of the attack, and whether ransomware was involved, are also unclear.
For a time, the Crown website was down, and receptionists told callers to the company that they could not transfer calls.
On June 19, the company attributed the attack to an international cybercriminal organization.
“Due to the security measures we had in place, the quick action of our IT staff, and the support provided by some of the world’s leading cybersecurity experts, we were able to quickly contain and address the issue,” John Tate, Crown senior vice president, said in Monday’s statement from Crown.
New Bremen-based Crown said it is continuing to work with federal law enforcement to investigate the matter.
The attack halted or delayed production at 24 manufacturing plants in 14 locations.
Crown makes industrial equipment such as forklift trucks, rack conveyors, hand pallet trucks and more. The company has more than 19,600 employees with a service and distribution network of more than 500 retail locations in over 80 countries.
Cyberattacks have more than doubled since the pandemic, according to the International Monetary Fund. The number of ransomware attacks worldwide grew as much as 74% in the past year, Director of National Intelligence Avril Haines told Congress in May.
Ransomware attacks represent 24% of all breaches and the median cost per ransomware attack more than doubled over the past two years to $26,000, the Associated Press has reported.
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