CDK Global announces that it'll take several days to fix the ongoing software issue.
Software provided by CDK, used by dealerships for managing operations such as scheduling and record keeping, started restoring on Saturday. CDK is engaged with customers, providing alternate methods for business conduct during the process which is expected to take several days.
CDK is investigating the system shutdown following two cyber incidents. While the company hasn't confirmed the culprits, Bloomberg reported negotiations with an Eastern European hacker group demanding a ransom in tens of millions to end the outage. CDK hasn't commented on the ransom report.
Dealerships and car manufacturers are implementing temporary solutions to sustain retail operations while the software is down. CDK urged dealership employees in an automated message to be cautious of phishing scams and secure sensitive information.
The National Automobile Dealers Association is seeking information from CDK about the nature and scope of the cyber incident. Thousands of dealerships rely on CDK to operate, and the outage has affected their ability to provide seamless customer experiences and process transactions efficiently.
The system shutdown might slow down business and cause shipping delays at dealerships during the summer season. According to the National Automobile Dealers Association, dealership sales in 2023 reached $1.2 trillion in the United States.
Ford is assisting dealers to set up alternative software systems and workarounds. Dealerships on the East Coast are manually filling out forms to process sales, facing issues with registering purchased cars with the state, as they rely on CDK's software for registration information. Some dealerships are still selling cars but can't complete transactions promptly.
Penske Automotive, which doesn't use CDK Global for its auto dealers, mentioned its Premier Trucking Group division uses CDK's dealer management system. Penske is implementing response plans, and its 48 PTG locations remain operational.
Sonic Automotive is operational but is implementing workaround solutions to minimize disruption caused by the CDK outage. The incident is expected to negatively impact Sonic's financial and business operations. Premier Truck Group declined to elaborate on its response plans, and Sonic didn't respond to CNN's request for comment.
CNN's Peter Valdes-Dapena and Ramishah Maruf contributed to this report.
