We all talk about and follow the world markets, because their development determines the dynamics on local soil as well. In the 21st century, we rather take them for granted that we cannot do without, but are they secure enough?

In early July, Japan's largest port, a major entry point for Australian beef exports, was hit by a cyber attack. Ships, containers and vehicles were stranded for days in the port of Nagoya. Port operations partially resumed days later, but full activity returned a week after the attack, officials told Japanese media.

Russian cybercriminal group LockBit 3.0 has been blamed for the attack in local media. The Nagoya Port Transport Association said it did not pay the ransom. "Exports and imports remained blocked after the Nagoya United Terminal System was infected with malware that encrypts data and holds it hostage in exchange for payment," the official said.

According to the association, the resumption of operations has been delayed because checking backup computer data for viruses took longer than expected. Meanwhile, a team of more than 60 people has been working around the clock to rewrite lost data.

"At a time like this, when we are facing a wide range of risks to our cyber security, it is important to strengthen the protection and resilience of our information networks," a Japanese government spokesman said.

He said the Japanese government seeks to continue to take preventive measures against such threats by creating cybersecurity safety standards for critical infrastructure.

Japan in general has a heightened sense of risk regarding food security. Australian beef exporters said the shutdown was too short to create major supply disruptions.

Over the past five years, there have been a series of cyberattacks affecting agriculture around the world – the most prominent of which was the one against meat processor JBS in 2021, when the company's Australian operations were shut down for a week. Ultimately, the company then paid a ransom of $14.2 million.