Japanese Optics Company Hoya Suffers Debilitating Cyberattack

Hoya Corporation, a vast optics company known in the photography community for its lens filters, experienced a cyberattack last week that continues to disrupt its production and fulfillment systems.

“The day before yesterday, we learned that the Group’s head quarter and several of its business divisions have experienced an IT system incident. The Company will work closely with each of its business divisions and sites, as well as with outside experts, to identify the nature and scope of the incident and to restore the situation as soon as possible,” Hoya said in a statement on April 1st. And no, it was not an April Fool’s joke.

The “incident,” which Bleeping Computer describes as a cyberattack, occurred on March 30th.

In a subsequent update on the situation on April 2nd, Hoya explains that it is working to resolve the issue as quickly as possible. However, as of today, April 5th, no additional timeline for a fix is available, suggesting that work to resolve the problem remains ongoing.

On April 4th, Hoya Corporation issued a PDF with more information about the incident. The company hired external specialists to help restore services quickly, and Hoya is working with relevant authorities.

“While the full effects, extent and nature of the incident continue to be investigated, the systems for some production plants and the ordering system for several products have been affected,” Hoya explains. “The company is making every effort to respond to customer demand and minimize the impact on our customers to the greatest extent possible.”

With the aid of consultants, Hoya is also investigating if any confidential or personal customer information was exposed due to the incident. The company believes that a complete analysis of what happened and the effects will take “a considerable number of days.”

This is, unfortunately, not Hoya’s first time being victimized by cybercriminals. The company’s production line in Thailand was temporarily disrupted in 2019 due to a malware attack. In 2021, the company experienced another cyberattack. In that case, the alleged perpetrators, Astro Team, claimed to have put more than 300GB of confidential information from Hoya onto the dark web.

Any customers who have purchased products directly from Hoya should keep an eye the situation, as it remains unclear if their personal data has been compromised. Hoya is one of the leading eyeglass makers as well, providing as much as 90% of the world’s corrective lenses. Hoya employs nearly 40,000 people across more than 30 countries.

Image credits: Hoya Corporation