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Halliburton, one of the world’s largest oil field service companies, has revealed new details about a recent cyberattack that led to the shutdown of certain systems to contain the damage. The company, headquartered in Houston, disclosed the incident in an 8-K report filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) on Thursday.
The cyberattack, which occurred on Wednesday, targeted Halliburton’s systems and disrupted operations at its Houston headquarters. In response, the company took proactive measures, including taking certain systems offline to protect them from further compromise. The company is currently investigating the breach with the assistance of external contractors.
In the SEC filing, Charles Geer, Halliburton’s vice president, stated, “The Company’s response efforts included proactively taking certain systems offline to help protect them and notifying law enforcement. The Company’s ongoing investigation and response include restoration of its systems and assessment of materiality.” Geer also noted that Halliburton is actively communicating with customers and stakeholders to assess any potential impacts from the incident.
As a precautionary measure following the attack, some employees were instructed not to connect to the company’s internal network. As of Friday afternoon, no group has claimed responsibility for the attack.
Halliburton, which gained notoriety for its controversial role in the Iraq War, employs nearly 48,000 people globally and reported $5.8 billion in revenue for the first quarter of 2024. The oil and gas industry remains a prime target for cybercriminals and ransomware groups, known for their propensity to pay ransoms to recover critical systems. Although no ransom demands have been confirmed in this case, at least five oil and gas companies have been listed on ransomware leak sites since June.
The threat of cyberattacks on the energy sector has become so significant that G7 leaders committed in June to bolstering the cybersecurity of global supply chains, particularly in key technologies used to manage and operate electricity, oil, and natural gas systems worldwide.
In May, the Transportation Security Administration (TSA) renewed cybersecurity regulations for operators of hazardous liquid and natural gas pipelines and liquefied natural gas facilities. These regulations, implemented in the wake of the Colonial Pipeline attack, require operators to confirm compliance with a range of cybersecurity measures, including the creation of an incident response plan, appointment of a cybersecurity coordinator, regular vulnerability scans, and network segmentation.
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