Cyber attack may be cause of network failure

The network outage issue affecting Mediterranean Shipping Company’s msc.com website was reported on 10 April on the MSC Cargo Twitter account. The website is currently inaccessible with a message on the homepage notifying users that extended maintenance is taking place.

In a tweet on 10 April, MSC Cargo said: “We are sorry to inform you that http://MSC.com and myMSC are currently not available as we’ve experienced a network outage in one of our data centers. We are working on fixing the issue.”

In a separate tweet on 10 April, MSC Cargo stated: “At this point in time we cannot rule out entirely the possibility of a malware, but we can confirm that our agencies worldwide network is working. And that our local agents support customers for all services as usual.”

MSC, which works with ports across the world, has confirmed that the problem is at its Geneva headquarters and it has closed down the servers in its headquarters, but said its global agencies network is unaffected. Booking platforms including INTTRA and GT Nexus remain operational.

Ports including San Diego, Barcelona and Long Beach were affected by cyber-attacks in 2018. APMT was severely affected by a cross-border cyber attack in 2017.