A new series of cyber attacks has impacted several retailers, including Asos, H&M, and The Foschini Group (TFG). Asos customers received a push notification last week that was a direct threat to management, claiming hackers had accessed the company's servers on the cloud platform Snowflake and threatened to leak customer information. Asos has stated that no payment information was stolen.
Days later, H&M announced it was investigating claims by the global criminal hacking group Shinyhunters that its servers had been breached. TFG, which owns brands like White Stuff, Phase Eight, Hobbs, and Whistles, confirmed a “cybersecurity incident” at its London business, impacting IT systems and websites of some brands, though it believes payment information is not at risk.
Separately, Dutch supermarket chain Ahold Delhaize experienced a “security issue” on its network, forcing system shutdowns. French supermarket chains also faced a hack that caused fridges to warm up to 50C, spoiling food worth millions of euros. Tech experts expressed concern that such attacks could threaten food security.
Retailers are increasing vigilance, with Tesco’s chief executive Ken Murphy stating the supermarket is closely monitoring the Asos incident to learn prevention methods. Helen Dickinson, chief executive of the British Retail Consortium, noted that UK retailers invest hundreds of millions annually in cyber defences, but sophisticated attacks often exploit human error, such as tricking employees into revealing login details.