Car dealers may have to wait for "several days" before their computer systems are fully restored following a massive ransomware attack on one of North America's biggest data system providers.
CDK Global told customers last Saturday that the restoration process may take several more days, but not weeks before online services go back to operational.
(Photo : Justin Sullivan/Getty Images)
The company has since recommended alternative resource centers to affected car dealers while rivaling companies also provide temporary solutions to car dealers grappling with losing sales amid the summer sales season.
The region-wide system outage has already reached its fifth day with over 15,000 car dealers across the US and Canada reporting service disruption since Wednesday.
The multi-day service disruption follows a two-consecutive cyberattack last week that crippled car dealership businesses, primarily their shipping, customer service, and digital transaction operations.
CDK Global is already working with authorities to resolve the situation.
Also Read: Over 15,000 Car Dealers Suffer Computer Outages in US, Canada
CDK Global Hacker Wants Over $10 Million for Ransom
With no exact date as to when all CDK Global systems would return to normal, the company has reportedly been negotiating with the hackers to recover all stolen data from car dealers.
Bloomberg earlier reported that the company plans to pay the Eastern Europe-based hackers to retrieve its data systems as soon as possible.
According to sources, the unidentified hackers are demanding tens of millions of dollars from the company to return all stolen data.
Even if the hackers return the stolen data soon, the cyberattack is expected to hamper this year's car sales throughout North America amid shipping delays, interrupted repairs, and transaction slowdowns.
Related Article: Increased Cyberattacks in Financial Sectors May Cause Economic Instability, IMF Warns
Ransomware Attacks Surge Throughout North America
The ransomware attack on CDK Global and its partnered car dealers is only part of the growing trend of cyberattack campaigns across North America amid growing political tensions.
Several major financial institutions and hospitals have earlier reported major ransomware attacks throughout this year with hackers demanding millions of dollars to return all stolen data.
Authorities have since blamed the attacks on state-sponsored threat actors from Russia and China amid its ongoing trade sanctions against the two countries.
