'Massive' cyberattack targets the German Chambers of Industry and Commerce
The impact of the attack is widespread across Germany
The Association of German Chambers of Industry and Commerce (DIHK) has become the target of a "massive cyberattack" forcing it to shut down all of its IT systems as well as telephones, email servers and digital services.
The DIHK is a coalition of 79 chambers that represents commercial, industrial, and service-related businesses in Germany. More than three million companies, from small stores to major enterprises, are among its members.
In addition to providing its members with a variety of general support services, DIHK is responsible for advocating on behalf of the business sector's interests at the national and European levels.
In a message posted on LinkedIn, the DIHK itself confirmed the attack.
The General Manager of the IHK Mittleres Ruhrgebiet, Michael Bergmann, said that the cyberattack occurred on Wednesday. He described the incident as "massive" and said that due to the countermeasures, communication by phone and email was now not possible.
"At this stage, we cannot predict how long the (urgent shutdown) measures will be necessary," Bergmann added.
The IHK Würzburg-Schweinfurt stated on Twitter that "the websites of the IHKs and related services as well as accessibility via email are currently affected by a disruption."
"Emails sent to the IHKs from outside are currently not being delivered," it added.
According to a statement posted on the DIHK website, the shutdown was implemented as a precautionary measure for security reasons to allow IT personnel time to come up with a solution to boost defences.
It added that IT experts are presently working to resolve the issue and that IT systems will be gradually turned on after testing.
Some services for businesses have been resumed after ensuring that they are safe to use, although complete restoration will take more time.
While the security incident carries the signs of ransomware, this has not been officially confirmed yet.
According to the German tech news site Heise, individual divisions in North Rhine-Westphalia, Bavaria, Lower Saxony and Mecklenburg-Western Pomerania have all been experiencing issues, suggesting that the attack's effects are widespread and not exclusive to any one area.
In recent years, the number of cyberattacks has steadily increased in Germany.
Two German fuel and oil distributors, Oiltanking GmbH Group and Mabanaft GmbH, experienced business disruption earlier this year as a result of a cyberattack.
Following the attack, Oiltanking GmbH declared force majeure for most of its supply activities, while Mabanaft GmbH announced force majeure for the majority of its inland supply business in Germany.
In June, Microsoft warned of rising Russian cyberattacks targeting countries that have supported Ukraine in its war against Russia.
The company said Russian hackers are not only going after government systems, but also targeting other sectors that may have crucial information related to the war, such as think tanks and humanitarian groups, as well as defence, telecommunications and energy firms.
Microsoft has identified more than 100 organisations in 42 countries that have been impacted by the attacks since the start of the war.