Ransomware attack hits Kronos, a widely-used HR management platform, which could have potentially breached some of the data of its high-profile customers, including tech giant Tesla and sportswear manufacturer Puma.
BERLIN, GERMANY - JANUARY 25: In this photo illustration a young man types on an illuminated computer keyboard typically favored by computer coders on January 25, 2021 in Berlin, Germany. 2020 saw a sharp rise in global cybercrime that was in part driven by the jump in online retailing that ensued during national lockdowns as governments sought to rein in the coronavirus pandemic.
Ransomware Attack Hits Kronos HR Management Platform
The parent company of Kronos, Ultimate Kronos Group, announced that its firm had been hit with a ransomware attack, which, in turn, could shut down its services for "several weeks," as per the report by USA Today.
As such, it leaves its clients, including small businesses and giant enterprises, scrambling their payroll system and timesheets on their own--just in time for the holidays.
It is worth noting that the cyberattack outage has expanded to the Kronos Workforce Central, which is used by its customers to organize essential HR management data, such as attendance and scheduling.
Not to mention that the role of Kronos is to help businesses manage their workforce seamlessly while in the cloud.
However, with the ransomware attack hitting the firm that was supposed to manage the workforce of its clients, Kronos suggests its customers find other ways to do it themselves.
According to the news story by ZDNet, the HR management firm further said that its services are predicted to be unavailable for "several weeks." As such, its clients have to look for alternative solutions to remedy the situation.
Kronos' Response
On top of that, Kronos acknowledged the "seriousness of the issue." In fact, the firm added that it has already "mobilized all available resources to support our customers and are working diligently to restore the affected services."
However, one of its clients told ZDNet in the same report that when it reached out to a representative from Kronos, they got varying answers from the HR management firm while explaining the situation.
Kronos Cyberattack
Kronos discovered the cyberattack last Saturday, Dec. 11, but during that time, it was not yet clear if it was a ransomware incident.
During the weekend, the HR management firm initially issued a message on its community message board, saying that there is "unusual activity impacting UKG solutions using Kronos Private Cloud."
Back then, Kronos had yet to rule out that the "unusual activity" in its systems was brought upon by a massive ransomware attack.
Read Also: Chinese Ransomware Attacks Major Energy Network! Potentially Shutting Down Power for 3 Million Homes
Kronos Outage: Payroll
Numerous cybersecurity experts went on to report on Monday, Dec. 13, that a couple of companies using the services of Kronos have already complained that they could no longer access their payroll system.
Some clients of Kronos even admitted that the "several weeks" long outage of Kronos could mean that some employers would miss out on the payroll this week, which is critical as Christmas would be next week.
It is worth noting that aside from Tesla and Puma, other high-profile clients of the firm include the government of the City of Cleveland, the supermarket chain in the United Kingdom Sainsbury's-among others.
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Written by Teejay Boris
