Are You Prepared for a Cyber-Attack? Lessons from the CDK Global Incident 

Imagine if the software your organization relies on to close deals and pay employees suddenly went down, and you had no idea when it would be fixed. Could you continue doing business? How much money would you lose? Unfortunately, this scenario became a reality for over 15,000 car dealerships in the US and Canada when two cyber-attacks hit the industry software provider, CDK Global, in June.

These attacks shut down the sales, financing, and payroll systems for thousands of dealerships, forcing them to either halt business operations or revert to the old-fashioned pen-and-paper method. This incident should serve as a wake-up call for all small business owners, emphasizing the critical importance of robust cybersecurity measures.

What Happened?

The initial attack occurred on the evening of Tuesday, June 18. Upon detection, CDK Global immediately took the appropriate action by bringing the entire system offline to investigate the issue. Although the system was back up the following day, a second incident prompted the company to take the system offline again. It appears the system was brought back online prematurely before all compromised areas were discovered, leading to the second attack. Cybersecurity experts suggest it could be weeks before the system is fully operational again.

While some businesses were able to revert to manual processes, this incident highlights the vulnerabilities associated with relying on digital systems. In our increasingly digital world, where most transactions are just a few clicks away, significant issues arise when systems go offline. Critical parts of the business process, such as completing transactions, managing payroll, and interacting with financial institutions, can come to a standstill. Until the systems are back online, many business operations cannot be fully completed, leading to delays and potential financial losses. Business owners know that there is no sale until the check clears the bank!

What’s Next?

CDK Global has not disclosed the exact cause of the attack. Whether this is intentional or because they are still unsure remains to be seen. Their security team will need to meticulously investigate every area of the business to determine exactly what was compromised. It’s often difficult for large companies to get the details about cyber-attacks 100% correct after the first review because they may not be able to determine the extent of an attack’s network penetration if there are multiple points of vulnerability.

Lessons for Your Business

This incident should prompt all business leaders to evaluate their systems for operational continuity and cybersecurity. Will your business be prepared to continue operating if and when a similar event occurs?

If you don’t have a business recovery and continuity plan in place, you’re putting yourself at risk. And if you do, you need to ensure it is high-quality, tested often, and capable of handling a large-scale attack where multiple operational systems are disabled. If the answer is no, it’s time to take action.

Take Action Now

We offer a Security Risk Assessment that will achieve two important things:

  1. Analyze Your Network for Vulnerabilities: We’ll identify if and where an attack can occur and provide solutions to patch vulnerabilities, reducing the risk of becoming the next cyber-attack victim.
  2. Develop a Continuity and Recovery Plan: We’ll help you determine what continuity or recovery plan makes sense for your organization. Cybersecurity is essential for doing business, but even the most robust security solutions are not 100% foolproof. You must have a plan to bounce back and continue operations if something happens to your network or a third-party software you rely on, like CDK.

Don’t wait for a cyber-attack to disrupt your business. Be proactive and ensure your organization is prepared to handle any cybersecurity threats that come your way.

To get started, call our office at 843-418-4792 or https://www.spartantec.com/discoverycall/ to book your Security Risk Assessment now.