Eagers Automotive, a prominent car dealership conglomerate operating across Australia and New Zealand, grapples with a significant cyber attack that has forced the suspension of its trading activities on the stock exchange. The attack has cast a cloud of uncertainty over the company’s extensive operations, impacting numerous systems across its locations in both countries.
Despite efforts to ascertain the full extent of the breach, the exact implications remain unclear, prompting an urgent investigation supported by external cybersecurity experts. The incident, announced on December 27, 2023, has triggered concerns about the potential compromise of sensitive data, given the company’s vast customer base and the nature of its business.
Although Eagers Automotive has reported revenue figures of AU$4.82 billion in the first half of 2023 and employs a workforce of 8,500 individuals, the true impact on its operations and the security of customer and employee information remains uncertain. To address the severity of the situation, Eagers Automotive promptly notified both the Australian Cyber Security Centre and the New Zealand National Cyber Security Center, seeking their support and guidance in managing and investigating the cyber incident.
While the company expressed regret for the inconvenience caused to its customers, it refrained from explicitly addressing the potentiality of a data breach in its official statements. The cyberattack on Eagers Automotive is part of a concerning trend affecting various large Australian enterprises. Recent incidents involving Yakult Australia and Nissan Australia, alongside other prominent businesses such as DP World, Pizza Hut Australia, and academic institutions like the University of Sydney, underscore the escalating threat landscape faced by organizations across the region, amplifying the urgency for robust cybersecurity measures and swift response protocols.
