Security News > 2023 > June > Us, hacked by LockBit? No, says TSMC, that would be our IT supplier

Following claims by ransomware gang LockBit that it has stolen data belonging to TSMC, the chip-making giant has said it was in fact one of its equipment suppliers, Kinmax, that was compromised by the crew, and not TSMC itself.

The crooks said TSMC has an August 6 deadline to cough up.

When contacted by The Register about the break in, TSMC said it was a third-party supplier - not the chip manufacturer itself - that was breached by the ransomware gang.

"After the incident, TSMC has immediately terminated its data exchange with this supplier in accordance with the company's security protocols and standard operating procedures."

While TSMC did not name Kinmax in its statement, the spokesperson directed further questions about the breach to Eric Huang, vice president of Kinmax Technology, and also shared a letter it received from the smaller biz about the break in.

Huang did not immediately respond to The Register's inquiries, and TSMC did not answer our question about whether it would pay the $70 million demand.

News URL

https://go.theregister.com/feed/www.theregister.com/2023/06/30/tsmc_supplier_lockbit_breach/