Garmin Connect ransomware attack – site still down after 24 hours

Yesterday we reported how Garmin users throughout the world have been unable to access the US firm’s Connect service through which rides and runs are uploaded from devices. While the company has yet to confirm that it has been hit by a ransomware attack, several employees are reported to have said this is the case on social media.

Garmin Connect went offline early yesterday (Thursday).

Those signing into the Garmin Connect site are currently greeted by a message reading: “We are currently experiencing an outage that affects Garmin.com and Garmin Connect. This outage also affects our call centers, and we are currently unable to receive any calls, emails or online chats. We are working to resolve this issue as quickly as possible and apologize for this inconvenience.”

ZDNet reports that a ransomware attack has encrypted its internal network and some production systems.

As well as its official website and Connect data-syncing service, the issue is also said to be affecting Garmin's aviation database services and several production lines in Asia.

This includes flyGarmin, a website that supports the company's aviation navigational equipment. Some pilots have therefore been grounded as they are unable to download an up-to-date version of the firm’s aviation database which is a requirement to fly.

Garmin has thus far refused to comment on suggestions that the issues have been caused by ransomware, saying only that it is investigating. This means that it is currently unclear whether any customer data has been lost or stolen.

While many features on Garmin devices cannot currently be used, data saved on them has not been lost.

Rides recorded on a Garmin smartwatch or bike computer will remain on your device unless you delete them.

They can also be posted to services such as Strava manually by connecting to a computer via USB, downloading the .fit file from the activities folder, and then uploading it from the computer to the website.

On Strava, there's an option to upload activities manually from a drop-down menu that appears on the top right on the desktop site, and on the top left on their mobile app.