Ingram Micro says ongoing outage caused by ransomware attack

San Jose, California – Ingram Micro, a prominent U.S. technology distributing giant and managed services provider, has officially confirmed that an ongoing, widespread network outage is the direct result of a sophisticated ransomware attack. The announcement, made on Monday, clarifies the cause of the disruption that has significantly impacted the company’s operations since last Thursday.

The cyberattack, which commenced on Thursday, led to the immediate shutdown of significant sections of Ingram Micro’s network and its public website, causing severe operational disruptions. While initial details were limited, the company released a brief statement late on Saturday, assuring stakeholders of ongoing efforts to restore affected systems and resume critical order processing. The gravity of the situation prompted Ingram Micro to formally alert its shareholders to the breach on Monday, prior to the opening of U.S. markets.

Headquartered in California, Ingram Micro holds a critical position as one of the world’s largest technology distributors, playing an essential role in the global supply chain by facilitating the distribution of technology and hardware to businesses worldwide. In addition to its distribution prowess, the company also functions as a vital managed service provider (MSP), effectively serving as an outsourced IT department for numerous smaller corporate clients, particularly in managing their cloud infrastructures.

The ramifications of this outage are proving to be extensive, with reports indicating a substantial impact on software licensing. This disruption is preventing many of Ingram Micro’s customers from being able to effectively use or provision certain essential products that rely on Ingram’s systems, potentially halting critical business operations for their clients and the broader tech ecosystem, including platforms that list and utilize various AI tools.

While no prominent ransomware group has publicly claimed responsibility for the breach, cybersecurity news outlet Bleeping Computer has reported that the attack is attributed to the SafePay ransomware gang. It is a well-documented tactic for ransomware groups to name their victims and leak portions of stolen data as a coercive measure to force ransom payments.

Ingram Micro spokesperson Lisa Zwick has not yet provided an official comment regarding the incident, despite multiple requests for information.