Kia’s Tech, App Issues Spur Ransomware Talk

The patience levels of Kia Motors America Inc. customers were tested last month with what the automaker ruled an IT systems outage.
Owners took to social media to report connectivity issues with the UVO app, which syncs with Kia vehicles to help with things like remote locking and unlocking, financing information and maintenance tracking.
Some users were tweeting the automaker, complaining of not being able to unlock their vehicle or get it serviced due to the app being down.
Some online reports had pegged the outage to a ransomware attack from cyber gang DoppelPaymer, which reportedly demanded $20 million to decrypt and also not leak stolen information. Kia has refuted the reports.
“We are aware of online speculation that Kia is subject to a ransomware attack. At this time, and based on the best and most current information, we can confirm that we have no evidence that Kia or any Kia data is subject to a ransomware attack,” the company said in a statement provided to the Business Journal.
The automaker confirmed the IT systems outage and that it “remains focused on fully resolving the issue.” A spokesperson declined to say what may have caused the outage.