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A copper mining firm in Germany, Aurubis, recently disclosed suffering from a cyberattack incident that shut down its IT systems to prevent the attack from spreading. Being the second largest copper producer in the world and first in Europe, Aurubis boasts managing over 6,900 staff worldwide and producing about one million tonnes of copper cathodes annually.
Aurubis published a statement on its website, stating that some of its IT systems had been taken offline but assured its customers that their production of copper and other service operations had not been impacted.
The mining firm also added that the production and environmental protection facilities at the smelter sites remain operational while their staff manually maintained incoming and outgoing products. Investigations are ongoing as the company teams up with authorities to accelerate the issue’s mitigation.
Moreover, Aurubis stated that its priority is to keep the delivery of finished goods under control and maintain the production volumes and raw materials supply at normal levels – all while investigating the attack’s nature and scope.
The mining firm relies on manual operations in the meantime as they attempt to keep their services up and running while investigations are in progress.
According to the statement, Aurubis is implementing a manual mode in its operations for as long as required to keep the flow of goods adequate. Once all computer-assisted automation returns to its smelter sites, the mining firm said that everything in their process is expected to resume as normal.
As of now, it cannot be estimated how long Aurubis’ systems will return to their normal state. Transitional solutions are to be established as an alternative communication channel for the company and customers since the company can only be reached through its telephone number.
Aurubis has not shared further details about the attack, but researchers believe signs of a typical ransomware attack are evident based on their investigations. The mining firm also added that the incident could be a part of a larger cybercriminal campaign against the metals and mining industry.
