M&S Hit by £300m Cyber-Attack; Online Orders Suspended
Marks & Spencer (M&S) has suffered a major cyber-incident, with the retailer estimating the cost to be around £300m ($400m). The incident has forced M&S to temporarily suspend online orders, affecting sales across various product ranges.
The cyber-attack was carried out by the notorious Scattered Spider ransomware group using their DragonForce malware. This group is known for targeting major companies with sophisticated attacks. Although they recently announced a withdrawal from cybercrime, experts remain cautious about the possibility of future activities.
The incident has resulted in the theft of personal customer details, including contact information and online order history. M&S expects online orders to resume in July, but customers should remain vigilant about potential phishing attempts or identity theft. The retailer anticipates increased stock management costs in the stock market of the financial year 2025/26 due to the incident.
M&S Chief Executive Stuart Machin has described the incident as a 'bump in the road' and reassured customers that it will not derail the retailer's growth strategy. Despite the setback, M&S reported its highest pre-tax profits in over 15 years for the financial year 2023/24.
M&S is committed to enhancing its operational resilience following the cyber-incident. The retailer plans to upgrade its infrastructure and reduce system interdependencies to prevent future attacks. The financial impact of the incident, including recovery costs and lost revenue, will be presented separately in M&S's financial results for 25/26.
