Marijuana shops running MJ Freeware software platform for cannabis business are the latest targets of attackers. The activity of marijuana online shops has been disrupted due to attacks against the software used for sales and inventory, Boston Globe reported.
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Several shops and medical dispensaries informed customers that sales and appointments could not be proceeded timely as most of the daily tasks had to be done manually. The reason? Attackers managed to take down the software provided by MJ Freeway.
No Data Is Stolen, Just Corrupted
Interestingly, MJ Freeway says that no data has been stolen and that no hacking group has claimed authorship over the attacks. The company claims that all the attackers did was data corruption.
Also, there are no signs of ransomware nor was a ransom demanded by the attackers. Nonetheless, investigations are initiated and authorities have been contacted to help identify the attackers. The company is certain that the attack was targeted and that they were specifically chosen.
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“We are going full-force with a forensic investigation, and we’ll turn over the results to criminal investigators as needed”, sais Jeannette Ward, MJ Freeway’s executive director of data and marketing. Many companies have been affected by the incident, as visible by the notifications left on their websites explaining why procedures were taking longer than usual.
This is what one shop has shared:
We are still experiencing a service outage of our sales tracking software, MJ Freeway. The state’s virtual gateway remains functional. For Wednesday 1/11, we will be open at both locations for normal business hours. However, as we will need to conduct certain sales functions manually, your visit may take longer than usual. As such, if your schedule allows, we recommended delaying your visit to NETA until this issue has been resolved.
To balance out the issue, MJ Freeway started helping clients switching to an alternative system while things get back to normal. Fortunately, backups were available, and it’s a matter of time before normal activities are restored.
Milena Dimitrova
An inspired writer and content manager who has been with SensorsTechForum since the project started. A professional with 10+ years of experience in creating engaging content. Focused on user privacy and malware development, she strongly believes in a world where cybersecurity plays a central role. If common sense makes no sense, she will be there to take notes. Those notes may later turn into articles! Follow Milena @Milenyim
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