Vietnam Post service interrupted due to ransomware

Since the morning of June 4, many users of Vietnam Post services have reported that they cannot access the application and website of this unit. Huyen Trang, an online seller in Hanoi, said the situation happened early in the morning when she needed to deliver goods to customers, but could not access the app to create orders.

"I waited until noon but still couldn't access it, so I had to find another way," Trang said.

In some online seller communities in Vietnam, many members complained that they could not create delivery orders or use the services of Vietnam Post Corporation. Currently, the company's website is also in a "Unaccessible" state.

In an announcement released this afternoon, Vietnam Post said its information technology system was attacked by ransomware. The incident occurred at 3 a.m., directly affecting the implementation of activities related to postal delivery services.

"Postal Finance, Public Administration and Goods Distribution Services are still operating normally," said a company representative.

In addition, this unit also confirmed that it had activated the action scenario, following the instructions of the Department of Information Security - Ministry of Information and Communications, including disconnecting the information technology system to isolate the incident and protect data. This is also the reason why the website and related applications were interrupted.

"Vietnam Post is working with authorities and coordinating with partners, which are leading information technology corporations in Vietnam, to make efforts to handle and fix the problem as soon as possible," the company added.

Vietnam Post Corporation is one of the next big companies in Vietnam to fall victim to ransomware. Previously, hackers also attacked the systems of VnDirect Securities, Vietnam Oil Corporation (PVOIL) and a network operator, in late March and early April. With this type of attack, hackers infiltrate and lie dormant in the system for a long time, find important data and encrypt it, then ask the victim to pay a ransom to unlock it.

According to Viettel Cyber ​​Security's report on information security risks in Vietnam in the first quarter of 2024, the number of ransomware attacks on business infrastructure in Vietnam increased by 70% compared to the same period last year. This form can cause data loss, disrupt services and affect the reputation of units.