JBS USA said it paid $11 million in ransom in response to the May 30 criminal hack that began in Australia and spread to its operations in the United States and Canada.
When it paid the ransom, most of its operations were ongoing, the company said, but it paid to keep the hackers from stealing data.
It said preliminary investigation indicates that no company, supplier or customers information has been compromised.
“This was a very difficult decision to make for our company and for me personally,” JBS USA CEO Andre Nogueira said in the statement. “However, we felt this decision had to be made to prevent any potential risk for our customers.”
JBS said its ability to quickly resolve the issues resulting from the attack was due to its cybersecurity protocols, redundant systems and encrypted backup servers.
The company said it spends more than $200 million annually on IT and employs more than 850 IT professionals globally.
The company said it maintained constant communication with government officials throughout the incident.
The Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) in the United States has identified REvil, a criminal organization the agency said is likely based in Russia, as the group behind the cyberattack on JBS.
