- Advantest detected a ransomware attack on February 15, isolating affected systems
- Ongoing investigation; It is unclear whether customer or employee data was stolen.
- The semiconductor industry is increasingly under attack, following previous attacks on Microchip and Applied Materials
Japanese semiconductor test equipment supplier Advantest has confirmed that it suffered a recent ransomware attack.
In a company news release, Advantest said on Sunday, February 15, that it detected “unusual activity” within its IT environment. It quickly activated its incident response protocols, isolated affected systems, and hired outside cybersecurity experts to contain and mitigate the attack.
“Preliminary findings appear to indicate that an unauthorized third party may have gained access to portions of the company’s network and deployed ransomware,” the announcement reads.
Targeting the semiconductor industry
At this time, the investigation is ongoing and Advantest does not know if any data was stolen, or how many people may have been affected.
“If our investigation determines that customer or employee data was affected, we will directly notify affected individuals and provide guidance on protective measures,” he explained. “This investigation is ongoing and is being conducted in close collaboration with leading cybersecurity experts. Advantest is focused on understanding the full scope of this incident while bolstering all possible defenses.”
Advantest Corporation is a Tokyo-based Japanese technology company that designs and manufactures automatic test equipment (ATE) used to verify and measure advanced semiconductors and electronic components during manufacturing.
The company employs about 6,500 people worldwide and in 2024 had net operating income of 161.2 billion yen ($1.04 billion). Its biggest customers tend to be major global semiconductor manufacturers and technology companies, such as major logic and memory chip makers in South Korea, Taiwan and elsewhere.
Cybercriminals have increasingly targeted organizations in the semiconductor industry, The record claims.
The attack on Advantest comes after the attack on Microchip in 2024 and the incident at Applied Materials the previous year. Before that, in 2022, both Chinese-owned Nexperia and Taiwanese Foxsemicon were also attacked with ransomware.
Through The record
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