Table of contents
- An unprecedented cyber disaster
- Six weeks of production paralysis
- Massive losses and government intervention
- A dark year for UK cyber security
An unprecedented cyber disaster
The cyberattack on Jaguar Land Rover (JLR) in August, owned by India’s Tata Motors, has been described by experts as the most costly cyber event in UK history.
According to the Cyber Monitoring Centre (CMC), the losses total £1.9 billion (€2.19 billion) and affected more than 5,000 organizations across the country, including suppliers and dealerships.
Six weeks of production paralysis
The attack halted JLR’s three UK plants for nearly six weeks, freezing production of around 1,000 cars per day.
The CMC report classified it as a category 3 systemic event (on a 1–5 scale), highlighting its severe impact on the supply chain and the wider national economy.
Massive losses and government intervention
Analysts estimate the shutdown cost around £50 million per week.
By late September, the UK government had stepped in to provide a £1.5 billion loan guarantee, helping the automaker restart operations in early October and prevent deeper economic repercussions.
A dark year for UK cyber security
The JLR case is not isolated. In the same year, the clothing chain Marks & Spencer suffered an estimated loss of £300 million after two months of online service disruption.
According to analysts, 2025 marks a new phase of vulnerability for major British companies, increasingly exposed to sophisticated and targeted attacks.
The message is clear: without a cyber resilience strategy, no industrial giant can consider itself safe.
