A cyberattack on a vehicle breathalyzer company leaves drivers stranded across the United States

A cyberattack on a US company for vehicle breathalyzers has left drivers across the US stranded and unable to start their cars.

Intoxalock says On its website It is “currently facing a downtime” following a cyberattack on March 14. Intoxalock sells breathalyzers that fit into car ignition keys and are used by people who are required to provide a negative breath alcohol sample to start their car.

Rachel Larson, a spokeswoman for Intoxalock, confirmed to TechCrunch that the company had been subjected to a cyberattack. Larson said the company has taken steps to “temporarily shut down some of our systems as a precaution.”

These breathalyzers need to be calibrated every few months or so, but the cyberattack left Intoxalock unable to perform this calibration. The company said customers whose devices require calibration may experience delays in starting their vehicles.

Drivers send On Reddit They say cars are unable to start if they miss a calibration, effectively preventing drivers from getting out of their cars.

according to Local news reports across Mainedrivers are suffering from closures and some have been unable to start their cars. One auto shop in Middleboro He told WCVB 5 in Boston That she had cars parked in her parking lot all week due to the cyberattack.

News reports from all over the United States show that drivers are being affected New York to MinnesotaDrivers were unable to drive because the breathalyzers in their cars could not be calibrated instantly.

Intoxalock did not say what type of cyberattack it had been subjected to, such as ransomware, whether there had been a data breach, or whether it had received any communications from the hackers, including any ransom demands. The company’s technology is used in 46 states, its website says, and it claims to serve 150,000 drivers each year.

Intoxalock did not provide an estimated timeline for its restoration.