If there is one universal truth out there today in modern offices, it’s this: everyone hates password requirements. I can’t count how many times a coworker has complained to me personally about how hard to remember their password is because they had to use random words and numbers instead of their child’s name and birthdate. But I get it, the password fatigue is real. Between work accounts, streaming services, banking apps, and the three different logins required just to order a coffee, it’s no wonder everyone defaults to some version of “123456.” They sigh, roll their eyes, and think: What’s the worst that could happen?’
Turns out, quite a lot.
This year, just a few short months ago, a 158-year-old logistics company (one that has survived two worlds, multiple recessions, and the invention of the car) was forced to close its doors because of one employee’s weak password. That’s it. No Criminal Minds-type hacking scene, no spy movie break in. Just guessed login credentials. That, combined with no MFA, disaster recovery processes, or zero trust architecture, led to the eventual downfall that put 700 people out of work. This is the story of KNP Logistics Group.
Let me start by setting the day. It’s a cloudy Tuesday morning in June 2025, at the KNP Logistics yard in the UK. KNP, founded in 1865 as Knights of Old using horse drawn wagons (yeah, they’re that old), were now running a fleet of around 500 lories. If you asked KNP, they’ll say its IT complied with industry standards and it had taken out insurance against cyber-attacks. You know, the bare minimum. Around midday employees stated that they noticed the phones stopped ringing. By that evening, the company’s internal systems had completely shut down. Invoices disappeared, trucks couldn’t be routed, and the dispatch software showed nothing but error messages.
So what happened? A gang of hackers, known as Akira, got in to KNP’s system by simply guessing an employee’s password. And because Multifactor Authentication (MFA) was not required or in place, the guessed password turned in to the best skeleton key any criminal could ask for. Akira was able to stroll right through the front door (digitally, of course) and do what they do best: explore, spread, and seize control. Think of it like burglars who not only rob your house but also change the locks, shred your family photos, and take the spare keys to the garage. Within just days, critical systems were encrypted and everything was deleted, including the supposedly safe backups.
Later that same month KNP received a ransom note demanding money in return for KNP’s data. “If you’re reading this it means the internal infrastructure of your company is fully or partially dead…. Let’s keep all the tears and resentment to ourselves and try to build a constructive dialogue,” the ransom note read. The hackers didn’t ask for a specific sum of money in the note itself, but a specialist ransomware negotiation firm estimates it could be as much as £5 million. In July, KNP halts most of its operations as employees are unable to access payroll or dispatch systems.
As stated earlier, it is true that KNP had cyber insurance. But that doesn’t mean it was great insurance. Take for example having car insurance but realizing too late that it doesn’t cover Godzilla attacks. That’s what happened with KNP. No amount of fine print in the world is going to help when your car has been stomped to a pancake. KNP Leadership slowly began to realize that restoration was impossible, and by September the company entered administration, ceasing all operations after 158 years.
The human cost behind this incident was devasting. Drivers, warehouse staff, office managers — people who had built careers with the company — were left wondering how a simple password mistake could erase their livelihoods overnight. One dispatcher was quoted as describing it as “watching a giant slowly tip over.” First the screens froze, then the trucks stopped, and then, just like that, the entire company was gone. For KNP’s customers and suppliers, the closing caused ripple effects across the logistics chain in the UK. Contracts were voided, deliveries were left stranded, and relationships that had lasted over a hundred years were severed. If the whole thing wasn’t so devastating it would almost be funny. A company that survived two world wars and the Great Depression was brought down by what? A password so weak a hacker could stumble across it in an afternoon.
Cyber Security experts have long stated that the most common passwords (i.e. Password123, Welcome2025, 123456) are basically invitations to criminals. And the irony here is that KNP wasn’t reckless with their security. They did what most mid-sized logistics firms do to meet industry standards; they ran antivirus software, kept up with compliance, and carried cyber insurance. But attackers aren’t measuring you against the industry standard, they’re measuring you against the weakest point in your defenses. And in KNP’s case, that point was wide open.
This lesson isn’t a new one, but KNP’s downfall puts it back in bright, shining lights: in 2025, one bad password can still kill a company. If a company with more than a century of experience could vanish almost overnight, who’s safe? The reality is no one. Every modern business has a digital aspect to it. Healthcare, education, finance, manufacturing – all industries where downtime can be catastrophic – face the exact same threat. Attackers don’t need high end devices or spy equipment to break in to a business when human laziness does all the work for them.
So what can you do when every business is only as strong as its weakest password? A lot actually:
Use stronger passwords: Yes, it’s annoying. No, your child’s name plus a number isn’t enough.
Enable MFA everywhere: If you hate typing in a code, imagine how much you’ll hate explaining to 700 employees that they’re out of work because you skipped it.
Backups need to be untouchable: If your backups are connected to the same network, they’re just more hostages.
Don’t mistake compliance for protection: Passing an audit isn’t the same as surviving an attack.
Insurance can’t resurrect you: It might soften the blow, but it won’t restart the trucks.
The fall of KNP Logistics Group is both tragic and absurd. Tragic, because hundreds on innocent people lost their jobs and a 158-year-old established company had disappeared. Absurd, because the cause wasn’t some fancy cyberweapon but a bad password. If this story teaches us anything, it’s this: cyber security isn’t about fancy tools or glossy compliance reports. It’s about basics, about habits, about making sure that one person’s shortcut doesn’t become everyone’s downfall. So the next time your IT department forces you to reset your password or insists you download that annoying authenticator app, remember KNP. A few extra seconds of inconvenience may be all that stands between your company’s future and its obituary.
And if your password happens to be your child’s name with a number right now? Change it. Go ahead. I’ll wait.
