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Data cleanup on aisle 2! Can somebody pass me a Clorox wipe?
The makers of everyone’s favorite pandemic product got hit by a cyberattack last month, and the incident is causing ripple effects that could soon reach consumers.
The Clorox Company announced Aug. 14 that it “identified unauthorized activity” in its IT systems and took some of them offline. While the scope and impact of the incident were unknown at the time, Clorox told investors that it “caused, and is expected to continue to cause, disruption to parts of the Company’s business operations.”
That much has held true. In a Sept. 18 update, the disinfectant giant said it processed fewer orders in the last month because it had to do so manually—which ultimately means that cleaning supplies are dwindling on shelves.
“The Company is operating at a lower rate of order processing and has recently begun to experience an elevated level of consumer product availability issues,” Clorox wrote in an SEC filing.
While Clorox said its systems are no longer in danger, it’s still repairing damaged portions of the networks and regaining full production speed.
The Wall Street Journal reported that Clorox’s stock price fell in reaction to the news and that quarterly earnings would fall as well.