Industrial tech manufacturer Sensata says ransomware attack is impacting production

A ransomware attack on Massachusetts-based manufacturer Sensata Technologies last weekend has seriously disrupted the company’s systems.

The company, which has sites in about a dozen countries, notified the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) of the incident on Wednesday, warning investors that the ransomware attack forced officials to take its network offline. 

The incident began on Sunday and prompted the company to contact law enforcement.

“The incident has temporarily impacted Sensata’s operations, including shipping, receiving, manufacturing production, and various other support functions. While the Company has implemented interim measures to allow for the restoration of certain functions, the timeline for a full restoration is not yet known,” the company said in its 8-K filing. 

“The preliminary investigation has identified evidence that files were taken from the Company’s environment,” the company said.

Sensata, which reported nearly $4 billion in revenue in the last fiscal year, is an industrial technology company with more than 19,000 employees — producing sensors, electrical protection components and other tools for automotive, heavy vehicle and off-road, industrial, and aerospace markets.

Cybersecurity experts are assisting with the recovery effort, Sensata said, and they are working to identify the files that were stolen so that people can be notified of any personal information accessed. 

Sensata said it does not believe the attack will have a material impact on the company’s financial status for the current quarter but noted that this may change based on the outcome of the recovery. 

The company ships about 1 billion units of product each year. It’s best known for its work designing panel control switches for the Apollo 11 moon mission and for helping upgrade the Hubble space telescope.

No ransomware gang has taken credit for the incident as of Wednesday evening.