Casio Confirms Cyberattack Amidst Operational and Financial Challenges

• Japanese tech company Casio announced a third party illegally accessed its network.
• The intrusion resulted in system failure and the inability to provide some services.
• For now, the scope and nature of the security incident are still being investigated.

Japanese tech giant Casio Computer Co., Ltd has confirmed that it suffered a major cyberattack on October 5, 2023. The breach resulted in unauthorized access to Casio's networks, causing notable service disruptions across its range of electronic products, from watches and calculators to musical instruments and cameras. 

The company issued an official statement detailing the attack, explaining that the breach led to a system failure preventing the provision of certain services. Casio has not specified which services were affected, raising concerns among customers and stakeholders about potential impacts on operations and data integrity.

Casio is actively investigating the breach and has engaged an external specialist agency to determine if any personal or sensitive data was compromised. The immediate response included reporting the incident to relevant authorities and implementing measures to restrict further external access. 

This incident adds to Casio's cybersecurity challenges, as the company reported a similar breach approximately one year ago, when hackers accessed servers of the Casio ClassPad education platform, compromising customer data. 

The recurrence raises concerns regarding potential vulnerabilities in Casio's cybersecurity framework and the company’s data protection measures.

Compounding its challenges, Casio recently announced to shareholders an extraordinary loss of approximately $50 million due to large-scale personnel restructuring. The dual pressures of operational disruptions from the cyberattack and financial strain from restructuring pose significant challenges for the company.

In other news, Money transfer giant MoneyGram confirmed the recent cyberattack that crippled its systems in September, resulting in a customer data leak, which included personal information and transaction customer information.