Cyberattack cripples operations of chip manufacturer Microchip Technology

American semiconductor manufacturer Microchip Technology has disclosed that it was the victim of a cyberattack that left its manufacturing facilities “operating at less than normal levels.”

The company detected suspicious activity in its information technology systems on Saturday, August 17th, according to a filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

After steps to assess, contain, and remediate the unauthorized activity, Microchip determined on August 19th that an unknown party disrupted some servers and business operations.

“As a result of the incident, certain of the company’s manufacturing facilities are operating at less than normal levels, and the company’s ability to fulfill orders is currently impacted,” Microchip said in a filing.

It’s not yet clear what type of cyberattack impacted the company or its full scope, nature, and impact, as Microchip’s investigation is ongoing.

For now, no threat actor has taken responsibility for the incident, and no data has appeared in Cybernews-tracked leak sites.

Microchip also said it promptly took additional steps to address the incident, including isolating affected systems, shutting down certain systems, and launching an investigation with the assistance of external cybersecurity advisors.

“The company is working diligently to bring the affected portions of its IT systems back online, restore normal business operations, and mitigate the impact of the incident.”

The material impact of the incident has not yet been determined as of the filing date.

Microchip Technology is a publicly listed American manufacturer of microcontrollers, mixed-signal, analog, and Flash-IP integrated circuits. It is also a supplier to the US defense industry. Its share price has barely moved in the last five days, fluctuating around $80. Since the start of the year, the share price has dropped by 7.2%.