Clorox shortages are affecting many American consumers. If you are wondering why there are not enough Clorox products in the market, then you can blame it on the recent cyberattack against the American consumer products giant.
Although the security breach happened in August, the consumer and professional products manufacturer said that it still suffers from its negative effects.
Clorox Shortages Blamed on Recent Cyberattack
According to NBC News' latest report, ever since the massive cyberattack targeted Clorox, the American global company said that it had been unable to automatically process orders for its vendors.
These include Target, Walmart, and other giant retail stores. Because of this issue, the sales of Clorox slowed down. The cybersecurity breach is also leading to outages and product shortages.
"When [Clorox] couldn't take in the orders, even though the lines themselves could run, [Clorox] couldn't tell them what to produce or where to send it," said Allan Liska, a Recorder Future cybersecurity expert, who is familiar with the long-lasting effects of the Clorox cyberattack.
On Wednesday, Oct. 4, Clorox said that it could lose lots of money in the first quarter of its 2024 fiscal, which already ended on Sept. 30. The consumer products manufacturer said that this is among the results of the recent breach.
Before the cybersecurity attack happened, Clorox claimed that its sales could have grown in the mid-single digits in the first quarter. Unfortunately, the American firm confirmed that its sales could fall by 23% to 28%.
About Recent Clorox Cyberattack
Clorox disinfecting wipes are seen displayed for sale at a Walmart Supercenter on September 18, 2023, in Austin, Texas. Clorox has warned of a drop in quarterly earnings and product shortages after a recent cyberattack on the company's information technology infrastructure disrupted operations and product availability.
CNBC reported that the cyberattack against Clorox was announced in August. The American consumer product firm said that the effects of the security breach have widescale effects.
Authorities said that the Scattered Spider, the ransomware gang behind the recent cyberattacks on Caesars and MGM, might be connected to the Clorox breach.
Thanks to its efforts, Clorox was able to repair its operational systems. However, the manufacturer still resorted to manual procedures.
Because of this, its product fulfillment slowed down. Although this is the case, Clorox was still able to contain the threat.
"Clorox has already resumed production at the vast majority of its manufacturing sites and expects the ramp up to full production to occur over time," said the consumer products giant.
But, Clorox clarified that it can't estimate how long will it take to resume fully normalized operations.
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