On May 13, 2022, publishing powerhouse Nikkei said that the company’s headquarters in Singapore had been attacked by a ransomware attack. According to a recent press release by the firm, unauthorized access to the server was initially discovered on May 13, triggering an internal investigation.
Nikkei Group Asia takes swift action to shut down the impacted server and mitigate the damage. Nikkei said that the company is presently examining whether the attackers gained access to any consumer data held on the afflicted systems.
“The affected server likely contained customer data, and Nikkei is currently in the process of determining the nature and scope of the attack,” Nikkei added.
While investigating the ransomware assault, the media conglomerate stated it had discovered no evidence of a data breach. The incident was notified to the Japanese and Singaporean authorities in charge of personal data protection by Nikkei and its Asian business.
“We sincerely apologize for the trouble we’ve caused,” Nikkei’s public relations office said. “We will take appropriate action in cooperation with relevant authorities and strive to enhance information protection.”
Nikkei was also a victim of a high-profile business email compromise (BEC) fraud two years ago when it lost millions in a single wire transfer. One of Nikkei America’s workers in New York City was duped into wiring $29 million to a bank account controlled by the fraudsters, who pretended to be a Nikkei official.
With about 4 million print and digital subscribers and over 40 related firms active in publishing, broadcasting, database services, events, and the index industry, Nikkei is one of the world’s major media conglomerates. The media conglomerate, which purchased the Financial Times in 2015, now employs more than 1,500 journalists worldwide and has dozens of overseas editorial outposts.
