Jaguar Land Rover Fights Back from Cyber Attack, Production Halted Until Next Wednesday

Jaguar Land Rover Plants Shut Until Wednesday After Cyber Attack LONDON (Reuters) - Jaguar Land Rover's UK factories will remain closed until at least next Wednesday after a cyber attack at the end of last month, forcing the company to halt production and send workers home. The carmaker, which usually builds 1,000 cars a day, shut down its IT networks to protect them from damage following the hack on September 1. However, this move also meant shutting down its highly automated production lines, resulting in lost output. "It's a bit of a Catch-22," said an industry expert, who wished to remain anonymous. "You need to protect your systems, but that means you can't operate them either." The company has confirmed that some data was impacted by the attack, but it is unclear at this stage which customers, suppliers or JLR itself may be affected. Jaguar Land Rover's shutdown has had far-reaching consequences for its dealerships and garages. Initially, they were unable to sell cars due to a lack of parts, with workarounds introduced later to mitigate the issue. The company's decision to extend the closure is likely to have significant implications for the global automotive industry, which relies heavily on just-in-time production methods. "This is a major disruption to the supply chain," said another expert. "It will be interesting to see how JLR manages to get back up and running." Jaguar Land Rover has not yet commented on when it expects to resume production or what measures it will take to prevent similar attacks in the future. The company's UK factories, located in Solihull, Halewood, and Wolverhampton, have been closed since September 1. Staff have been told not to come into work until at least next Wednesday, which means more than two full weeks of global output will be lost. In a statement, Jaguar Land Rover said: "We are working closely with our suppliers and partners to minimize the impact on customers and ensure that we can get back up and running as quickly as possible." The cyber attack is believed to have originated from outside the UK, but the exact source remains unclear. An investigation into the incident is ongoing. As the automotive industry continues to rely heavily on technology, such incidents highlight the growing threat of cyber attacks on critical infrastructure. "This is a wake-up call for the industry," said an expert. "We need to take steps to protect ourselves from these types of threats." Jaguar Land Rover's extended shutdown serves as a reminder of the importance of robust cybersecurity measures in today's interconnected world. (Reuters) *Reporting by Bbc.*