Car dealerships hit with cyberattack

More than 15,000 car dealerships in the country are affected after multiple cyberattacks on CDK Global, the software company used by workers to run everyday chores, from managing client details to sales and employee payrolls.

CDK informed it has shut down its systems to prevent further damage from hackers. The company’s core dealer management system (DMS) and Digital Retailing solutions were partially restored after initial efforts, but a second attack on Thursday necessitated further shutdowns.

The cyberattacks remain under investigation, though there is no update on whether it was the work of a ransomware group or if customer details were leaked.

The outage is expected to last for several days, according to CNN, and eat into the summer car sales, which contribute 3% to 3.5% of the GDP the American auto industry generates annually.

Meanwhile, dealership employees posting about the CDK outage on Reddit say most of them are resorting to manual methods like spreadsheets and sticky notes to continue limited operations.

The CDK cyberattack is the latest among the increasing frequency of cyberattacks on big companies, including Microsoft, Ticketmaster, UnitedHealth and Caesars Entertainment.

Over 3,200 breaches were reported in 2023, a 78% jump from 2022, according to data firm SOAX. These security incidents are estimated to have affected 65 million people last year.