Thousands of car dealerships nationwide remain hampered or operating only for repair services this morning, two days into a cyberattack that shut down the software systems some dealers use to manage sales and service.
CDK Global says it provides dealership management services software to more than 15,000 car dealers nationwide. USA Today explains, “CDK’s software helps dealerships manage vehicle acquisitions, sales, financing, insuring, repairs and maintenance.”
Related: Dealership Reviews and Ratings
CBS News reports, “General Motors dealerships rely on CDK’s systems, as does Group 1 Automotive, an auto retailer with hundreds of dealerships across the U.S. Holman, with dealerships across eight U.S. states, is another CDK client.”
Some Partially Open
Some dealerships managed to keep service bays open the old-fashioned way. In Reddit threads, some dealership service employees reported doing business from spreadsheets and sticky notes.
CDK managed to restore some services late Wednesday, according to Bloomberg. But industry publication Automotive News reports that a second attack has taken them offline again. In an email to dealers, the company explained, “At this time, we do not have an estimated time frame for resolution, and therefore, our dealers’ systems will not be available at a minimum on Thursday, June 20.”
Related: The Car Dealer You’re Negotiating With Is Worried
Second Recent Dealership Attack
The attack came just eight days after a similar one temporarily slowed the operations of Findlay Automotive Group, a dealership network headquartered in Nevada. KTNV, an ABC News affiliate in Las Vegas, reports that the FBI is investigating that attack.
Cybersecurity site Bleeping Computer reports, “It is rumored that the company suffered a ransomware attack that also impacted its backups.” In a ransomware attack, hackers often “gain administrative privileges, they encrypt all of the devices on the network, leaving behind ransom notes with instructions on contacting the hackers.”
Cox Automotive, parent company of Kelley Blue Book and Autotrader, also owns CDK competitor Dealertrack.
