Hurtigruten, the Norwegian shipping company, has been the latest company to suffer a cyber attack, with the company reporting on its social media that its systems and phones were offline.
Specifically, in a brief statement to the Oslo Stock Exchange, Hurtigruten reported that “Several key systems are currently down,” as a result of the cyberattack that occurred early this morning. The company said it was cooperating with the Norwegian authorities and partners to obtain an overview of the situation and to limit the spread and damage of the attack.
The company whose ships often acts like a local ferry, bringing people and goods from port to port along Norway’s rugged western coast, said “relevant authorities” had been notified of the early Monday attack. It claims to be the largest cruise ship operator in polar waters.
Norway, in efforts to enhance maritime digitalization and meet the growing threat of cyber crime, is currently in the process of establishing an internationally cyber center, as it plans to open the “Norwegian Maritime Cyber Resilience Center” (NORMA Cyber), at the beginning of 2021.
Cyber attacks have been on the rise the last couple of months, with the IMO’s cyber attack being in the spotlight.