Apple Files Allegedly Stolen in Foxconn Cyberattack

This week, Foxconn fell victim to a cyberattack across several U.S. factories. As a result, a ransomware group now claims to possess project files from Apple, Intel, Google, Dell, NVIDIA, and more.

The Nitrogen group posted about the cyberattack, claiming that its in possession of 8TB of data. Allegedly, the hacker group has access to more than 11 million files spanning many of the largest tech companies. In a post from H4ckmanac on X (formerly Twitter), the files span “confidential instructions, internal project documentation, and technical drawings.”

Nitrogen posted a sample of files its has in its possession. Anything Apple-related doesn’t appear to be shown, so it’s unclear if the ransomware group has information regarding existing or future Apple projects.

Earlier, Foxconn confirmed the cyberattack with The Register. As of the time of writing, Apple’s supply chain partner has not commented on whether customer data has been compromised as part of the data breach. A Foxconn spokesperson said the company’s cybersecurity team has implemented measures to ensure production does not halt. Affected factories are resuming normal operations.

Foxconn is a long-running Apple supplier, working on an assortment of already-released products across its catalogue. The supplier is also well-versed in the production pipeline for devices yet to come. It would stand to reason that Foxconn would also be privy to production plans for Intel, Google, Dell, and NVIDIA. That said, these companies typically keep secret information close to the vest, so Foxconn’s files may include only need-to-know information.

The Nitrogen group is believed to be using a similar code to that of the leaked Russia-based Conti 2 ransomware. It’s claimed that the stolen files may be inaccessible following the cyberattack.