Operations at one of the three terminals of the country’s largest container port Jawaharlal Nehru Port Trust, JNPT, were impacted last night as a fallout of the global ransomware attack, which crippled some central banks and many large corporations in Europe.
The current attacks come weeks after the Wannacry ransomware attack, which impacted systems of many companies. Companies that affected today include Russia’s biggest oil company Rosneft, global advertising giant WPP Group and multiple institutions in Ukraine including its central bank and an international airport.
A JNPT official told MEDIA that they have been informed that the operations at Gateway Terminals India, GTI, have come to a standstill due to the malware attack.
They are trying to work manually. AP Moller-Maersk (APM), one of the affected entities globally, operates the GTI at JNPT. APM Terminals, a subsidiary of shipping giant Maersk, confirmed the cyber attack, however an APM spokesperson refused to comment.
Shipping Ministry confirms ransomware cyber attack on JNPT
INDIA’S Shipping Ministry has confirmed that one terminal at Jawaharlal Nehru Port Trust (JNPT) has been affected due to ransomware cyber attack.
It said in a statement that an unforeseen situation has developed at JNPT, Sheva owing to disruption in the operations of one of the private terminal operator, APM Maersk.
The Ministry and JNPT are taking steps to ensure minimum disturbance to trade, transporters and more importantly local citizens. The situation is being closely monitored and further steps to deal with the traffic situation will be initiated based on an assessment during the course of the next few days said the statement.
Shipping Ministry also said, JNPT has opened up its parking lots for cargo destined to the private terminal.
Meanwhile, the Government today said it has initiated proactive measures and is keeping a close vigil on the ransomware attack that has hit Europe, maintaining that there is no large-scale impact on India yet.
Speaking at the national convention on ‘Digitalization- Opportunities and Challenges, Information Technology Minister Ravi Shankar Prasad said in New Delhi that India is not much affected at this stage and government is keeping a close watch on the matter and has sent out advisories.
Security researchers have discovered a “vaccine” for the huge cyber-attack that hit organisations across the world yesterday.
The creation of a single file can stop the attack from infecting a machine. However, researchers have not been able to find a so-called kill switch that would prevent the crippling ransomware from spreading to other vulnerable computers. Experts are still unsure about the attack’s origins or its real purpose.