Trucking and fleet management solutions provider ORBCOMM has confirmed that a ransomware attack is behind recent service outages preventing trucking companies from managing their fleets.

Customers have told BleepingComputer that ORBCOMM has not shared what was causing the outage and only recently said that they hope to restore services by September 29th. After contacting the company, ORBCOMM confirmed they suffered a ransomware attack on September 6th that impacted the company’s FleetManager solution and Blue Tree product line.

“On September 6, 2023, ORBCOMM experienced a ransomware attack that is temporarily impacting our FleetManager platform and BT product line, which is used by some of our customers to track and monitor their transportation assets. Upon discovering the issue, industry-leading external cybersecurity experts were retained to conduct a thorough investigation,” Michelle Ferris, Vice President of Corporate Communications, told BleepingComputer.

Today, the US Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration issued a waiver allowing truckers to continue using paper logs until the service is restored and no later than September 29th. “Drivers using the identified ELDs may continue to record their hours of service on a paper graph grid or logging software, in accordance with 395.8, until ORBCOMM notifies FMCSA that the malfunctioning Blue Tree ELDs have resumed service or by September 29, 2023, whichever occurs first,” explains the FMCSA. BleepingComputer has learned that this outage has impacted some of the country’s largest freight transportation companies as they cannot track their fleets and inventory.

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