JBS Security Incident

In the wake of the 2021 ransomware hack of agribusiness giant JBS, what lessons have we learned? A decade ago, ransomware and food were two words that one might not think to link. Read Next Are the Threats of "Agroterrorism" Overblown? Pigs Cant Sweat, and Its Costing Us Billions Can USDAs HotHog App Keep Them Cool? The Online Right Touches Grass That was before May 30, 2021, when JBS, one of the worlds biggest beef, pork and poultry producers, was held for an $11 million dollar ransom by REvil, an alleged Russian-based cyber gang. The attack involved systems essential for the operations of three beef and pork plants in the U.S., Canada, and Australia, forcing them to temporarily shut down operations. Per a media statement released the next day, The company took immediate action, suspending all affected systems, notifying authorities and activating the companys global network of IT professionals and third-party experts to resolve the situation. To regain control, JBS made the tough call to make a payment. As in any ransom situation, this decision was heavily critiqued, due to concerns that meeting such demands could encourage future attacks. It remains the largest ransomware payout in the food and agriculture sector to date, but is far from the only example. The same thing happened to two regional farm cooperatives in Iowa and another in Minnesota that year. And just last year Dole took a hit, losing $10.5 million in an attack that stole the Social Security numbers of nearly 4,000 employees. Containing the breach impacted half of their servers and several user-end computers, disrupting a portion of their fresh vegetable processing. Agriculture and food are by no means digital newcomers. From data-driven farming with satellites and machine learning to packing house optimization software, large swaths of the supply chain operate on a technological plane. But this digital revolution comes with a hidden cost an elevated risk of cyberattacks that threaten...

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