CHENNAI: In the wake of reports that the commercial operation at the Jawaharlal Nehru Port Trust (JNPT) in Mumbai has been compromised by Petya, a globally threatening ransomware, the Chennai Port officials said on Wednesday that their operations are safe as majority of their container handling operations are done manually.
The traffic and electronic data processing managements of the Chennai Port have commented on the issue, saying that their operations in container handling are yet to embrace complete automation through integrated IT systems on their two terminals. Even though Chennai Port remains India’s second largest, it is still handling cargo in conventional methods, unlike the JNPT, the largest container port in the country.
Meanwhile, APM’s automated terminals in India have acknowledged the ransomeware attack. “The Information Technology systems in APM Terminals have been compromised in some locations. A number of terminals are not impacted yet. We are currently moving terminals with impaired IT systems to alternative ways of operating and continue to assess the situation,“ read a statement by APM Terminals. But the virus-infected service in the JNPT has stated through its public relations that their inland port container freight stations (CFS), including two in Chennai and Ennore Ports, are safe from the dreaded ransomware.
The origins of Petya are yet to be identified. It has struck operations of automation-based industries in Ukraine and Russia. The victims include Rosneft, one of the biggest oil companies in Russia, and WFP Group, an advertising firm. AP Moller-Maersk, the Dutch-based container terminal company which operates over 76 ports and 103 inland container freight service station services in at least 59 countries has also joined the list.
“Open-source reports indicate that the ransomeware basically exploits vulnerabilities in Server Message Block. If a ransomeware file is clicked and if it has encrypted the files, there is not much a user can do unless someone develops a security fix. There need to be timely backups to prevent losing work,” said a hack security expert from a reputed software firm in Bengaluru.