Comic distributor warns of more delays as ransomware attack persists

Diamond Comic Distributors (Image credit: Diamond Comic Distributors)

The ransomware attack which has affected the comic book distribution chain continues to plague Diamond Comic Distributors, and after six days the company has come forward with timelines for the expected delays to comic books over the next few weeks.

The ransomware attack became known on Friday, November 5, affecting the company's main website (www.DiamondComics.com), its email system, some parts of its ordering infrastructure, and other unnamed areas. While no longer the comic book industry's main distributor, Diamond remains a key primary (and in the case of DC and Marvel, secondary) distributor for comic books to comic shops, bookstores, and online booksellers like Amazon.

Meanwhile, the next major round of shipments - for books with a November 16/17 on-sale date - are currently being "picked and packed" at Diamond's warehouses. The distributor doesn't say whether those could also be delayed, but says it'll inform stores about expected delivery dates "early next week", as in November 15 or 16.

For the time being, Diamond has paused on processing any re-orders from comic book shops and bookstores, but expects to be able to by Saturday, November 13.

Due to their main website continuing to be offline, Diamond has set up a new website (www.DiamondComicsUpdates.com) to update the public directly about these continued issues.

Since much of Diamond's email system has been compromised, Diamond is using a third-party email system set-up with the email marketing company AWeber.

Throughout this process, Diamond continues attempts to mitigate the ransomware attack and regain access to their systems, in tandem with the technology solutions company Agility Recovery Solutions as well as unnamed law enforcement agencies.

Until the ransomware attacks are fully resolved and Diamond's systems are fully functional again, Newsarama recommends you check with your local store about new comics availability before you make the trip.

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Chris Arrant covered comic book news for Newsarama from 2003 to 2022 (and as editor/senior editor from 2015 to 2022) and has also written for USA Today, Life, Entertainment Weekly, Publisher's Weekly, Marvel Entertainment, TOKYOPOP, AdHouse Books, Cartoon Brew, Bleeding Cool, Comic Shop News, and CBR. He is the author of the book Modern: Masters Cliff Chiang, co-authored Art of Spider-Man Classic, and contributed to Dark Horse/Bedside Press' anthology Pros and (Comic) Cons. He has acted as a judge for the Will Eisner Comic Industry Awards, the Harvey Awards, and the Stan Lee Awards. Chris is a member of the American Library Association's Graphic Novel & Comics Round Table. (He/him)