A ransomware attack has halted milk production at Fairlife, a Coca-Cola brand known for its high-protein dairy drinks.
“As a result of the incident, production operations at Fairlife in the United States are temporarily suspended,” the Chicago-based company announced on its website. “Fairlife’s Canada production operations are not currently impacted.”
Although details are thin, Coca-Cola disclosed in an SEC filing that Fairlife discovered the intrusion today after identifying “unauthorized access by a third party to a portion of its systems, including its production-related systems, in connection with a ransomware event.”
“After detecting the issue, the Company promptly activated its incident response and business continuity protocols. The Company’s investigation and assessment of the impact of the incident is ongoing, with the assistance of outside advisors and cybersecurity experts. The Company has also notified law enforcement,” the filing adds.
Coca-Cola didn’t name the suspected culprit. But ransomware attacks often secretly infect fleets of computers and servers, and then encrypt all the data, effectively shutting down access. A ransom note is then displayed demanding that the victim pay up. Hence, Coca-Cola is likely suspending IT systems at Fairlife to contain the attack.
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“The full scope, nature, and impacts of the incident are not yet known,” the company added. “Accordingly, the Company has not yet determined whether the incident is reasonably likely to materially affect the Company,” amounting to a significant disruption or financial toll. For now, the company says: “Product quality and safety have not been impacted.”
The other danger is that ransomware attackers often steal sensitive data during their intrusions, which can then be leveraged to extort victim companies into paying to keep the data quiet. Coca-Cola acquired Fairlife in 2020, when it said the subsidiary would operate as a standalone business.
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Michael Kan
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I’ve been a journalist for over 15 years. I got my start as a schools and cities reporter in Kansas City and joined PCMag in 2017, where I cover satellite internet services, cybersecurity, PC hardware, and more. I’m currently based in San Francisco, but previously spent over five years in China, covering the country’s technology sector.
Since 2020, I’ve covered the launch and explosive growth of SpaceX’s Starlink satellite internet service, writing 600+ stories on availability and feature launches, but also the regulatory battles over the expansion of satellite constellations, fights with rival providers like AST SpaceMobile and Amazon, and the effort to expand into satellite-based mobile service. I’ve combed through FCC filings for the latest news and driven to remote corners of California to test Starlink’s cellular service.
I also cover cyber threats, from ransomware gangs to the emergence of AI-based malware. In 2024 and 2025, the FTC forced Avast to pay consumers $16.5 million for secretly harvesting and selling their personal information to third-party clients, as revealed in my joint investigation with Motherboard.
I also cover the PC graphics card market. Pandemic-era shortages led me to camp out in front of a Best Buy to get an RTX 3000. I’m now following how the AI-driven memory shortage is impacting the entire consumer electronics market. I’m always eager to learn more, so please jump in the comments with feedback and send me tips.
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