TSMC (Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co), a supplier for Apple’s SoC components and a major manufacturer for Qualcomm, recently fell victim to a variant of the WannaCry ransomware. On August 3rd, the Taiwan plants were infected during a software installation. According to TSMC, “this virus outbreak occurred due to misoperation during the software installation process for a new tool, which caused a virus to spread once the tool was connected to the Company’s computer network.” The infection caused the company to stop production for two days during their “ramp-up” for chips that will be used in future iPhones. TSMC said that a number of their systems and tools were infected, but they have recovered 80% of the infected equipment. It is believed that the company will recover the rest of the affected equipment today. The shutdown is believed to have cost the company roughly $250 million USD and will result in shipment delays.
