【原文】下文摘錄自香港《文匯報》6月3日︰

繼上月美國最大燃油管道營運商被黑客攻擊（cyberattack）後，全球最大肉類加工企業JBS也遭到勒索軟件（ransomware）攻擊，位於北美地區（North America）及澳洲（Australia）的多間廠房被迫停產，導致美國肉類批發價格應聲上漲。由於中國去年從美國進口的牛肉當中，超過一半是由JBS加工生產，如果事件影響持續，將可能對中國以至國際市場帶來更大衝擊，不過JBS表示，大部分廠房可在短期內恢復運作。白宮（White House）再次將矛頭指向俄羅斯（Russia），俄羅斯副外長里亞布科夫（Sergey Ryabkov）6月2日表示，一直就事件與美方保持接觸。

JBS沒有透露黑客（hacker）組織要求多少贖金（ransom），僅表示受事件影響，公司在澳洲的廠房在6月1日及2日全線停產，位於美國的所有牛肉工廠亦全部停工，加拿大（Canada）部分廠房也短暫停工。南美（South America）的阿根廷（Argentina）也受到衝擊，作為全球第五大肉類出口國，阿根廷就事件頒布長達30天的肉類出口禁令（ban）。

總部位於巴西（Brazil）的JBS，去年向全球出口的肉類價值總額136億美元（約1,055億港元），中國市場佔近三分一。業界人士估計，JBS大致控制着美國20%的牛和豬的屠宰產能（slaughtering capacity），事件對美國肉類市場已經產生明顯影響，美國農業部（U.S. Department of Agriculture）數據顯示，6月1日美國肉類加工商的牛屠宰量較上一周減少了22%；豬的屠宰量較上周減少了20%，批發價格也都有相應的上漲 。

JBS表示，事件中沒有顧客、供應商或員工資料外洩，由於備份伺服器未有受影響，正在外部資訊安全公司（cybersecurity firm）協助下全力恢復電腦系統，預計大多數廠房可於短期內復工，但要完全恢復可能還需要一段時間。

白宮發言人皮埃爾（Karine Jean-Pierre）表示，今次網攻很可能來自俄羅斯一個犯罪組織，希望俄方理解「負責任的國家不會藏匿勒索罪犯。」國土安全部（Department of Homeland Security ）轄下網絡安全及基建安全局（CISA）（Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency）表示會向JBS提供協助，聯邦調查局（FBI）（Federal Bureau of Investigation）亦展開調查，白宮會密切關注肉類供應是否受到潛在影響。

網絡安全公司Emsisoft網絡勒索分析師卡洛（Brett Callow）指出，類似JBS等關鍵商品供應商極易遭受攻擊，因為黑客相信這些企業會迅速支付贖金。人工智能企業QOMPLX聯合創辦人克拉布特里（Jason Crabtree）也表示，大型速遞公司聯邦快遞（FedEx）（Federal Express）等企業也可能成為攻擊目標，企業需加強實時監測系統中的異常動向，迅速對網攻作出反應。

編按︰JBS最終透過比特幣向黑客支付1,100萬美元贖金，以保護顧客資料。

U.S. meat prices rise after cyberattack hits world's largest meatpacker JBS

【譯文】Following the cyberattack on the largest fuel pipeline operator in the United States last month, JBS, the world's largest meat processing company, was also targeted in a ransomware attack. JBS was forced to shut down production in many of its factories in North America and Australia, resulting in a surge in meat prices in the U.S. wholesale market. Since more than half of China's beef imports from the U.S. last year were processed and produced by JBS, there could be a significant impact on China's and even the international market. Yet, JBS said it would be able to resume operation at most plants shortly. The White House once again pointed the finger at Russia over the attack, while the Russian Deputy Foreign Minister Sergey Ryabkov said on 2 June that he had maintained contact with the U.S. to discuss the issue.

JBS did not disclose the amount of ransom demanded by hackers, but just said that the operation of the company's Australian plants was totally suspended on 1 June and 2 June, so as its U.S. beef plants, while that of its plants in Canada was also temporarily ceased. Argentina in South America, as the world's fifth biggest meat exporter, was also adversely impacted and eventually announced a 30-day ban on all meat exports in this regard.

Headquartered in Brazil, JBS exported a total of US$13.6 billion （approximately HK$105.5 billion） of meat globally last year, and the Chinese market accounted for nearly one-third of its exports. It was estimated that the company controlled about 20% of the slaughtering capacity for U.S. cattle and hogs, and impacts on the U.S. meat market had already been seen. According to estimates from the U.S. Department of Agriculture, U.S. meat processors' cattle slaughter volume on 1 June had decreased by 22% from a week earlier, and a reduction of 20% was also recorded for that of hogs, while the wholesale price had increased as a result.

JBS said there was no evidence at the moment showing that any customer, supplier or employee data had been compromised, and since the company's backup servers were not affected, it had been working hard to restore the computer systems with assistance of an external cybersecurity firm. Most plants were expected to resume operation shortly but it would take time to achieve full recovery.

The White House spokeswoman Karine Jean-Pierre said the ransomware attack was believed to be performed by a criminal organization likely based in Russia, hoping Russia would understand that "responsible states do not harbor ransomware criminals". The Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency （CISA） under the Department of Homeland Security said it would provide technical support for JBS, and the Federal Bureau of Investigation （FBI） was investigating the case, while the White House was paying close attention to whether the meat supply would be affected.

Brett Callow, a threat analyst at the cybersecurity firm Emsisoft, pointed out that key commodity suppliers such as JBS were extremely vulnerable to cyberattacks as hackers believed that these enterprises would swiftly pay the ransom. Jason Crabtree, co-founder of the artificial intelligence and machine learning company QOMPLX, said top courier companies such as Federal Express （FedEx） and others might also be targeted, advising them to strengthen the capacity of detecting bad actors in their systems to rapidly respond to attacks.●龐嘉儀

Q&A

1. JBS最終支付了多少贖金予黑客？

2. 勒索軟件被歸類為什麼攻擊？

3. 勒索軟件通常透過什麼電腦病毒傳播？

4. 在香港，哪個部門主要負責應付網絡安全事故？

Answer

1. $1,100 萬美元

2. 「阻斷存取式攻擊」（Denial-of-access attack）

3. 木馬程式（Trojan horse）

4. 警務處網絡安全及科技罪案調查科（CSTCB）