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Tech giant Apple targeted in US$50 million ransomware hack at Taiwanese supplier Quanta

  • The ransomware group REvil claimed to have infiltrated the computer network of Apple supplier Quanta, which produces MacBooks for the US tech giant
  • This hacker cartel has asked Apple to pay a US$50 million ransom by May 1 in exchange for the data stolen from Quanta

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Tim Cook, chief executive of Apple, speaks during the Spring Loaded virtual product launch in Tiskilwa, Illinois, in the US on April 20, 2021. Photo: Bloomberg
Bloomberg
As Apple was revealing its newest line of iPads and flashy new iMacs on Tuesday in the US, one of its primary suppliers was enduring a ransomware attack from a Russian operator claiming to have stolen blueprints of the American tech company’s latest products.
The ransomware group REvil, also known as Sodinokibi, published a blog on its dark web site early on Tuesday, in which it claimed to have infiltrated the computer network of Quanta Computer. The Taiwan-based company is a key supplier to Apple, manufacturing mostly MacBooks. It also produces goods for the likes of HP, Facebook and Alphabet’s Google.

REvil’s public face on the dark web, a user on the cybercrime forum XSS who goes by the name “Unknown”, announced on Sunday that the ransomware group was on the cusp of declaring its “largest attack ever”, in a post reviewed by Bloomberg News. The post was made in Russian on a channel where the REvil group recruits new affiliates, according to a person familiar with Unknown’s history on the XSS forum who sought anonymity for fear of retaliation.

By early on April 20, REvil’s “Happy Blog” – a site where the cartel publicly names and shames victims in hopes of coaxing ransom payment – declared Quanta its latest victim. In their post, also reviewed by Bloomberg, the hackers claim they had waited to disclose the Quanta compromise until the date of Apple’s latest big reveal, contending the parts supplier had expressed no interest in paying to recover the stolen data.

The headquarters of Apple supplier Quanta Computer, a major contract manufacturer of notebook computers and other electronic hardware, is seen in Taoyuan City in northwestern Taiwan. Photo: Handout
The headquarters of Apple supplier Quanta Computer, a major contract manufacturer of notebook computers and other electronic hardware, is seen in Taoyuan City in northwestern Taiwan. Photo: Handout

Quanta acknowledged an attack without explaining if or how much of its data was stolen.

“Quanta Computer’s information security team has worked with external IT experts in response to cyberattacks on a small number of Quanta servers,” the company said in a statement. “We’ve reported to and kept seamless communications with the relevant law enforcement and data protection authorities concerning recent abnormal activities observed. There’s no material impact on the company’s business operation.”

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