Incident: Cyberattack Halts Honda Production at Multiple Plants.

Published Date: 2017-06-20

Postmortem Analysis
Timeline 1. The software failure incident at Honda due to the WannaCry ransomware occurred in May 2017 [Article 60907]. 2. The cyberattack incident at Honda that led to production halts at various plants around the world happened in June 2020 [Article 102012].
System 1. Car inspection system [102012] 2. Computer network [60907]
Responsible Organization 1. The WannaCry ransomware was responsible for causing the software failure incident at Honda's Sayama plant in 2017 [60907]. 2. A cyberattack, specifically a ransomware attack, was responsible for the software failure incident at various Honda plants around the world in 2020 [102012].
Impacted Organization 1. Honda Motor Co [60907, 102012] 2. Renault SA 3. Nissan Motor Co
Software Causes 1. The software cause of the failure incident was the WannaCry ransomware that affected Honda's computer network, leading to the halt in production at its Sayama plant [60907]. 2. The failure incident was also caused by a cyberattack, specifically a ransomware attack, which affected Honda's production operations at some US plants and led to the shutdown of various plants around the world [102012].
Non-software Causes 1. The WannaCry ransomware attack that affected Honda's computer network [60907]. 2. A cyberattack that targeted Honda, leading to production halts at various plants worldwide [102012].
Impacts 1. Production halt at Honda's Sayama plant in Japan, affecting models like the Accord sedan, Odyssey Minivan, and Step Wagon compact multipurpose vehicle [60907]. 2. Disruption in production operations at some US plants, leading to a halt in production at various plants worldwide [102012]. 3. Delay in restarting production at Honda's Ohio facilities, impacting the production of models like the Civic sedan, Accord sedan, CR-V, and Acura NSX [102012].
Preventions 1. Regularly updating and patching software systems to protect against known vulnerabilities could have prevented the WannaCry ransomware attack on Honda's computer network [60907]. 2. Implementing robust cybersecurity measures, such as firewalls, intrusion detection systems, and network segmentation, could have helped prevent the spread of the ransomware across Honda's global network [60907]. 3. Conducting regular cybersecurity training and awareness programs for employees to prevent phishing attacks and other methods used to introduce ransomware into the network [60907]. 4. Implementing a robust backup and disaster recovery plan to ensure that critical systems can be restored in case of a ransomware attack, minimizing production downtime and impact on operations [102012].
Fixes 1. Implementing robust cybersecurity measures to prevent future ransomware attacks like WannaCry [60907]. 2. Conducting thorough security audits and updates to ensure all systems are secure and up to date [60907]. 3. Enhancing network security protocols to detect and mitigate potential cyber threats more effectively [102012]. 4. Improving data encryption practices to safeguard sensitive information from ransomware attacks [102012].
References 1. Honda Motor Co spokesperson [60907, 102012] 2. Bloomberg [102012] 3. TechCrunch [102012]

Software Taxonomy of Faults

Category Option Rationale
Recurring one_organization, multiple_organization (a) The software failure incident happened again at Honda. In 2017, Honda halted production at its Sayama plant due to the WannaCry ransomware affecting its computer network [60907]. In 2020, Honda faced a cyberattack that led to halting production at various plants worldwide, including in the US, with a ransomware attack affecting its car inspection system [102012]. (b) The incident also affected other automakers. In 2017, Renault SA and Nissan Motor Co were affected by the WannaCry virus, leading to production stoppages at plants in various countries [60907].
Phase (Design/Operation) design, operation (a) The software failure incident in Article 60907 was related to the design phase. Honda halted production at its Sayama plant after finding the WannaCry ransomware in its computer network, affecting networks across various regions despite efforts to secure its systems in mid-May [60907]. (b) The software failure incident in Article 102012 was related to the operation phase. Honda faced a cyberattack that affected production operations at some US plants, with the attack reportedly impacting a car inspection system that checks for defects before cars ship out to dealers [102012].
Boundary (Internal/External) within_system, outside_system (a) within_system: - Article 60907 reports that Honda halted production at its Sayama plant due to the WannaCry ransomware that affected its computer network. The virus was discovered within Honda's networks across various regions, despite efforts to secure its systems in mid-May [60907]. - Article 102012 mentions that Honda faced a cyberattack that affected production operations at some US plants. The attack, reported as a ransomware attack, impacted a car inspection system within Honda's factories [102012].
Nature (Human/Non-human) non-human_actions (a) The software failure incident in the articles was primarily due to non-human actions. The incident was caused by the WannaCry ransomware that affected Honda's computer network, leading to the halt of production at the Sayama plant [60907]. The virus spread across various regions, impacting networks in Japan, North America, Europe, China, and other areas despite efforts to secure the systems earlier. The WannaCry ransomware is a type of malware that encrypts data and demands payment for decryption, indicating a non-human action as the root cause of the software failure incident. (b) The articles do not provide specific information about the software failure incident being directly caused by human actions.
Dimension (Hardware/Software) hardware, software (a) The software failure incident reported in the articles was primarily due to a cyberattack, specifically the WannaCry ransomware, which affected Honda's computer network [60907]. This cyberattack led to the halt of production at Honda's Sayama plant and other plants globally. The incident was a result of external factors originating in the hardware, as the ransomware infiltrated the computer systems. (b) The software failure incident was also related to software issues, as the ransomware itself is a type of malicious software that encrypts data and demands payment for decryption. The software failure originated in the malicious software that infected Honda's networks, causing disruptions to production operations at various plants [60907, 102012].
Objective (Malicious/Non-malicious) malicious (a) The software failure incident in the articles is malicious in nature. Both articles [60907, 102012] report that Honda was targeted by cyberattacks, specifically ransomware attacks. The WannaCry ransomware affected Honda's computer network, leading to production halts at various plants globally. The attack encrypted Honda's data and demanded payment before unencrypting it, affecting production operations and the car inspection system. These actions indicate a malicious intent to harm the system and disrupt operations.
Intent (Poor/Accidental Decisions) poor_decisions (a) The software failure incident reported in the articles is related to poor_decisions. The incident involved a cyberattack, specifically a ransomware attack, targeting Honda's computer network, leading to the halt of production at various plants globally [60907, 102012]. Despite efforts to secure its systems after the WannaCry ransomware incident in mid-May, Honda's network was still vulnerable to the new cyberattack, indicating potential poor decisions in the cybersecurity measures implemented by the company.
Capability (Incompetence/Accidental) unknown (a) The software failure incident reported in the articles is related to a cyberattack using ransomware, specifically the WannaCry ransomware. The incident affected Honda's computer network, leading to the halt of production at its Sayama plant in Japan [60907]. The ransomware attack impacted networks across various regions, including Japan, North America, Europe, and China. Despite efforts to secure systems, the virus caused disruption at plants, hospitals, and shops worldwide. The incident highlights the vulnerability of systems to cyber threats and the importance of cybersecurity measures to prevent such attacks. (b) The accidental aspect of the software failure incident is not explicitly mentioned in the articles. The incident is attributed to a deliberate cyberattack using ransomware, indicating a malicious intent rather than an accidental introduction of the ransomware into Honda's computer network.
Duration temporary The software failure incident reported in the articles was temporary. In [Article 60907], Honda halted production at its Sayama plant for a day due to the WannaCry ransomware affecting its computer network. The production was resumed the next day after addressing the issue. Similarly, in [Article 102012], Honda faced a cyberattack that led to the halt of production at various plants around the world, but production had restarted at all plants except for its Ohio facilities. This indicates that the software failure incident was temporary and did not result in a permanent shutdown of production.
Behaviour crash, value, other (a) crash: The software failure incident in the articles is related to a crash. Honda halted production at its Sayama plant after finding the WannaCry ransomware in its computer network, leading to a shutdown of production on Monday [60907]. The cyberattack affected production operations at some US plants, and production was halted at various plants around the world [102012]. (b) omission: There is no specific mention of the software failure incident being related to omission in the articles. (c) timing: The software failure incident is not related to timing issues in the articles. (d) value: The software failure incident is related to a value issue as the cyberattack affected production operations at Honda's plants, leading to a halt in production [102012]. (e) byzantine: The software failure incident is not related to a byzantine behavior in the articles. (f) other: The software failure incident could also be categorized as a ransomware attack, where the system was encrypted and demanded payment before unencrypting the data, affecting production operations at Honda's plants [102012].

IoT System Layer

Layer Option Rationale
Perception None None
Communication None None
Application None None

Other Details

Category Option Rationale
Consequence unknown (a) death: People lost their lives due to the software failure (b) harm: People were physically harmed due to the software failure (c) basic: People's access to food or shelter was impacted because of the software failure (d) property: People's material goods, money, or data was impacted due to the software failure (e) delay: People had to postpone an activity due to the software failure (f) non-human: Non-human entities were impacted due to the software failure (g) no_consequence: There were no real observed consequences of the software failure (h) theoretical_consequence: There were potential consequences discussed of the software failure that did not occur (i) other: Was there consequence(s) of the software failure not described in the (a to h) options? What is the other consequence(s)? The articles do not mention any direct consequences such as death, physical harm, impact on basic needs, or harm to non-human entities due to the software failure incidents at Honda plants caused by the WannaCry ransomware and the cyberattack. The main consequences mentioned were production halts and disruptions, with efforts to secure systems and restart operations [60907, 102012].
Domain manufacturing (a) The software failure incident reported in the articles is related to the manufacturing industry. The incident affected Honda's production plants, including the Sayama plant in Japan, which produces models such as the Accord sedan, Odyssey Minivan, and Step Wagon compact multipurpose vehicle [60907]. The cyberattack on Honda disrupted production operations at various plants worldwide, including those in the US, where models like the Civic sedan, Accord sedan, CR-V, and Acura NSX are manufactured [102012].

Sources

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