Victim of a cyberattack, the French Nexeya regrets a “considerable” data leak

The French specialist in electronic equipment for industry, in particular aeronautics and defense, is the victim of a “serious cyberattack” that has caused a “major” data leak, the German parent company Hensoldt announced on Thursday, August 18.

The origin and scope of the attack have not yet been established.

The German group specifies that a “significant volume of data” was probably stolen and that “the systems were encrypted (encrypted, editor’s note)”.

The press release does not explicitly detail whether it is a ransomware attack, of which companies are the most frequent victims.

In these cases, the hacker encrypts their victim’s data and demands a ransom to provide the decryption keys.

Nexeya and Hendoldt are working with authorities to establish the “origin and scope” of the attack and as they try to “restore operations at the French subsidiary as quickly as possible.”

Nexeya is specialized in electronics and supplies several companies, including aeronautics and defense.

Manufacturer of sensors and radars dedicated to defense

The Hensoldt group, a former subsidiary of Airbus, presents itself as the main European electronics group for the defense sector and manufactures components such as sensors or radars dedicated to critical missions.

Specifically, it is working on a radar capable of detecting stealth aircraft, delivering sensors for the new Eurofighters and should participate in the European Fighter Aircraft of the Future (SCAF, FCAS) programme.

The German government had decided in 2020 to increase the capital of the group and took a blocking minority in the name of its strategic interests.

The Ministry of Defense then explained that it was about “protecting the key technologies of the security and defense industry” and preventing “hostile powers” from having access to them.