TENS of thousands of containers filled with consumer goods in Australia were stranded after global port operator DP World was hit by a cyberattack, reports the Australian Financial Review.
DP World Australia had not received a ransom demand but confirmed it had cyber insurance. Insurance companies often decide whether or not to pay any ransom. The company did not foresee a scenario where it would need to pay a ransom, a DP World spokesman said.
Dubai's DP World, which operates terminals in Sydney, Melbourne, Brisbane and Perth and handles about 40 per cent of the goods coming in and out of Australia was forced to shut down it systems.
DP World Australia boss Nicolaj Noes said the shutdown prevented some 30,000 containers from moving, including refrigerated containers that hold everything from perishable foods to blood plasma.
While ships could still offload and pick up containers, the technology systems that allow trucks to share data with the port operator were turned off, meaning trucks could not get into DP World's terminals to collect or drop off containers.
Containers were piling up at DP World's terminal in Sydney's Port Botany because trucks could not get into the terminal to collect them.
"For some is not a big deal because it was some furniture that was supposed to go into stores anyway. But it could also have been a critical spare part that was missing to keep a factory running or for someone to start up their operation on a Monday," Mr Noes said.
He warned there could be a "snowball effect" from the delays in getting containers to customers, partly due to the difficulty of reassigning import and export slots when systems are restored.
DP World already has arrangements for some shipping lines to drop off containers at rival terminal like Patrick, due to recent industrial action, and Patrick executives are understood to have contacted DP World to offer assistance.
Air Marshal Darren Goldie, the country's cybersecurity coordinator, said the government's opposition to paying ransoms applied in this case, despite the severity of the hack.
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