Clorox warns cyberattack could lead to product delays, shortages
Written by ABC AUDIO on September 18, 2023
(NEW YORK) — An August cyberattack on Clorox caused “wide-scale disruptions” in its operations, which could mean product delays and shortages, according to a securities filing Monday.
The Clorox Company, known for its sanitizing wipes and brands such as PineSol, FreshStep cat litter, and Hidden Valley Ranch, said they detected “unauthorized activity on some of its Information Technology” on Aug. 14. The company took steps to “remediate the activity, including taking certain systems offline,” according to the filing.
The activity — deemed a cyberattack — damaged portions of the company’s IT infrastructure, “which caused wide-scale disruptions of Clorox’s operations,” according to the filing. That may mean an impact on Clorox products hitting shelves.
Clorox said it’s repairing the infrastructure damaged in the cyberattack and reintegrating the systems it proactively took offline. Clorox said it will begin transitioning back to normal automated order processing the week of Sept. 25.
“Clorox has already resumed production at the vast majority of its manufacturing sites and expects the ramp up to full production to occur over time. At this time, the Company cannot estimate how long it will take to resume fully normalized operations,” the company said in its filing.
Clorox anticipates its profits will take a hit as a result of the cyberattack, too.
“Due to the order processing delays and elevated level of product outages, the Company now believes the impact will be material on Q1 financial results,” the filing says. “It is premature for the Company to determine longer-term impact, including fiscal year outlook, given the ongoing recovery.”
The company said Monday they are “still evaluating the extent of the financial and business impact.”
It is not yet clear who carried out the cyberattack.
Clorox has not yet said which brands were impacted in the cyberattack.
The Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency, which serves as the Department of Homeland Security’s cyber arm, did not comment on the breach, and instead referred ABC News to Clorox.
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