Toyota’s Japanese production was halted due to insufficient disk space
production order system failure
No Cyberattack Involved
Scharon Harding - September 6, 2023 at 8:42 pm Universal Coordinated Time (UTC)
Toyota reported today that all 14 of its factories in Japan were forced to halt operations for approximately 48 hours last week. This unexpected shutdown occurred as a result of a malfunction in the production order system, caused by inadequate disk space.
Toyota stated that on August 28, the production order system of its Japanese factories experienced a malfunction due to the unavailability of certain servers responsible for processing part orders. Consequently, the functioning of all 28 assembly lines had to be halted.
The issue arose during the routine upkeep on the 27th of August. Toyota's official statement noted:
While performing maintenance tasks, the accumulated data in the database was cleared and arranged. Unfortunately, an error arose as there was not enough disk space, leading to the system coming to a halt. Since these servers were functioning on the same system, a comparable failure took place in the backup capability, preventing a switch to an alternative option.
Today, a report by Reuters referred to two undisclosed insiders "who are familiar with the situation," and claimed that the breakdown occurred during the upgrade of the system responsible for ordering components.
Until August 30, one-third of Toyota's entire production was halted. The company successfully reinstated its production order system on August 29 by moving the data to a server with greater capacity.
The declaration is a mishap for the leading car manufacturer globally, as they neglected to guarantee the smooth running of essential operations. However, Toyota was also eager to emphasize that the disruption was "not the result of a cyber assault."
In the past few years, people have been critically examining the cyber protection of the car seller. Toyota had to cease operations in its 14 factories in Japan in February 2022 because one of its suppliers was hacked. According to a report by Reuters on August 30, the recent shutdown might have a greater negative impact on Toyota's finances compared to the incident in 2022, as there was a significant 29 percent rise in domestic production during the first six months of this year, marking the first increase in two years.
In 2021, Toyota experienced a breach in their cybersecurity when an American manufacturing parts subsidiary was infiltrated by hackers. Additionally, in 2019, the company faced similar attacks on at least three separate occasions.
In order to avoid future incidents of the same nature, Toyota has stated that it has put in place "countermeasures" developed by thoroughly examining and confirming the situation. Additionally, the company has expressed its intention to reassess its maintenance protocols.
The automaker expressed regret to its "clients, vendors, and affiliated entities for any disruption or inconvenience caused."
