Cadbury chocolate factory shut down by Petya cyberattack

Truly an attack that strikes at the creamy center of the cybersecurity community: A Cadbury chocolate factory in Tasmania, Australia, has been hit by the Petya cyberattack sweeping the globe.

The massive ransomware attack, identified by security firm Bitdefender as GoldenEye, has already cut a swath across Europe and the rest of the world, encrypting files and systems and locking users out of entire networks.

Computers at Cadbury's factory in Claremont, just outside Hobart, stopped working late Tuesday night, forcing the factory to shut down production, ZDNet reports.

John Short, the Tasmanian secretary of the Australian Manufacturing Workers' Union, confirmed the problem, saying it was unclear when production would resume.

"Obviously we're hopeful it's not going to be too long, but we're not sure how severe the attack is," Short said.

Cadbury did not respond to a request for comment.

GoldenEye is just the latest in a string of high-profile cyberattacks to hit unsuspecting targets across the world. Last month, the WannaCry ransomware attack brought computer systems from Russia to the US to their knees, locking countless users out of their files and even bringing down 16 hospitals in the UK.

And these cyberattacks are no longer just hitting high-tech institutions and governments. Before the Cadbury chocolate factory closed the lids on its cocoa coffers last night, WannaCry was taking out other unlikely targets in Australia, including more than 50 traffic cameras in the state of Victoria.

We didn't complain when they took away our speeding tickets, but we take issue with cutting off the chocolate supply.

Watch this: Nasty Petya ransomware spreading fast

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