JLR hit by hackers

A cyber-attack has “severely disrupted” Jaguar Land Rover’s retail and production activities.

The UK-based carmaker, which is owned by Tata Motors, says the incursion forced it to close its systems although it has no evidence customer data was stolen.

“We are working at pace to restart our global applications in a controlled manner,” says a spokesman for the marque.

Production staff at JLR’s plant in Halewood, England, were asked to stay away from work while the IT problem was sorted out. The attack also affected its other main UK factory at Solihull, pictured, with employees there sent home.

JLR first reported the IT issues in a stock-exchange filing in Mumbai on the evening of September 1.

That’s an important date for British car dealers because the new “75” licence plates, which represent the year 2025, were launched with buyers eager to show off their new vehicles.

The cyber-attack comes after a report in July stated JLR has postponed the launch of its electric Ranger Rovers and Jaguar models for demand to grow and for more testing.

The company temporarily paused shipments to the US earlier this year after President Donald Trump imposed higher tariffs on imports. The UK struck a deal to allow 100,000 British vehicles to be exported to America at a 10 per cent duty rate, but that’s still higher than the 2.5 per cent rate that existed before.

JLR is the latest UK company to be hit by a cyber-security incident in recent months amid a surge in such attacks globally.

Last month, British retailer Marks & Spencer resumed taking click-and-collect orders for clothing after a nearly four-month pause following a cyber hack and data theft. In April, hackers tried to break into retailer Co-op Group’s systems.