M&S website down as retailer still suffering from cyber attack
The Marks and Spencer website has been down for customers, with the retailer still suffering from the effects of a cyber attack
Shoppers looking to browse the Marks and Spencer website have hit a snag as the retailer grapples with the aftermath of a cyber attack, leaving the site temporarily inaccessible. Customers attempting to visit the M&S site have been met with an apology: "Sorry you can't browse the site currently. We're making some updates and will be back soon."
The webpage remains unavailable for further use. According to the BBC, there are suggestions that the site may simply be undergoing standard maintenance.
Marks and Spencer has been approached to provide more details on the situation.
The incident follows a recent cyber assault over the Easter weekend, where MandS had to cease online orders and saw its shelves run bare. In this breach, customer data potentially including names, email addresses, postal addresses, and birth dates were compromised.
Marks and Spencer acknowledged on Wednesday that "human error" was behind the costly attack, which is looking to set the company back by approximately £300 million. Stuart Machin, the chief executive, has indicated that the disruption might persist up until July, reports Wales Online.
This disclosure comes alongside the announcement of an unexpected rise in adjusted pre-tax profits, totalling £875.5 million for the financial year ending March – a 22.2% increase from last year. Digital expert Robert Cottrill, technology director at ANS, emphasised the importance of M&S ensuring a comprehensive restoration of their systems to guarantee security and avert similar future mishaps.
Following the recent cyber attack on M&S, he told the PA news agency: "M&S appears to be taking the appropriate and necessary steps following the cyber attack, with a likely focus on restoring core systems and recovering critical data."
He added that the continued disruption could very well stem from the assailants having aimed at essential infrastructure, which necessitates time for thorough evaluation, securing, and reinstatement.
With M&S's complex global operations, he pointed out: "Given the scale and complexity of M&S's globally connected operations, the recovery process is understandably meticulous, with multiple interconnected systems requiring scrutiny."
Stressing the importance of diligent restoration efforts, he said: "It's essential that M&S prioritises a secure and complete recovery over a rapid one. Rushing to bring systems back online without full assurance of their integrity could risk further compromise. Ensuring robust security at every layer before resumption is not just sensible – it's vital."
The considerable interruption and resulting sales hit experienced by M&S clearly illustrate a critical lesson for all companies, as he observed: "The major disruption and sales loss M&S has seen following the incident serve as a powerful reminder to all organisations: cybersecurity must be treated as a board-level issue. No business is immune to cyber threats, and those with complex digital ecosystems are particularly vulnerable."
To effectively curb the impact of such events, he recommended: "Effective incident response plans, regular testing and collaboration with cybersecurity experts are critical to minimising disruption."
Lastly, he addressed the need for a forward-thinking security stance: "But more than that, a proactive approach that includes threat detection, security-by-design principles, and employee awareness is the best defence against increasingly sophisticated attacks."
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
NBC News
29 minutes ago
- NBC News
Oil prices jump following U.S. strike on Iranian nuclear facilities
Oil prices jumped and stock futures slipped Sunday evening, indicating concern among investors about the possibility of economic fallout from the ongoing unrest in the Middle East following U.S. strikes against Iran's nuclear facilities. The major focus is on oil. Iran remains a major international oil supplier, and it also sits on the Strait of Hormuz, a heavily trafficked waterway in the Persian Gulf that is a key transit channel for about one-fifth of the world's oil supply. Concerns centered on whether Iran would begin limiting or shutting down access to the strait. U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio said in a statement that closing the strait would be tantamount to 'economic suicide' for Iran and called on China, Iran's top trading partner, to head off any attempt by Iran to affect traffic. U.S. and global oil benchmark prices opened up 4% Sunday evening, underscoring the concerns about what the conflict means for the world's oil supplies. Oil prices already gained about 3% last week in the wake of Israel's initial strikes against Iranian targets and Iran's retaliatory missile attacks. Stocks also slid Sunday. S&P 500 futures contracts declined about 0.6% in the first hour of trading, while Dow Jones Industrial Average futures fell about 250 points, or 0.6%. Nasdaq 100 futures dropped 0.7%. U.S. markets officially open at 9:30 a.m. ET Monday. 'Should oil exports through the Strait of Hormuz be affected, we could easily see $100 oil' or an increase in U.S. gas prices by 75 cents per gallon, Andy Lipow, president of the consulting firm Lipow Oil Associates, said in a note to clients Sunday. In a worst-case scenario in which oil prices rose to at least $120 a barrel, U.S. gas prices would increase as much as $1.25 per gallon, Lipow said. In a follow-up email, Lipow said that even if the strait does not officially close, any action by a tanker company to pre-emptively reduce its footprint there represents 'a de facto supply disruption.' Iran's state-owned media reported that Iran's parliament backed closing the strait — but that the final decision lies with Iran's national security council, according to the report. Any move by Iran to alter traffic in the strait could also hurt its own economy — particularly commerce with China. On Sunday, a department of the U.K. Royal Navy said it observed 'electronic interference in the Strait of Hormuz.' At least two massive supertankers that had entered the strait were reported to have made U-turns. Marine tracking websites also showed the vessels turning about halfway through the strait. 'I encourage the Chinese government in Beijing to call them about that, because they heavily depend on the Straits of Hormuz for their oil,' Rubio said in an interview on Fox News. China is Iran's most important oil customer, and they maintain friendly relations. Iran may still be assessing the ultimate damage to its nuclear facilities as it contemplates its next move. The International Atomic Energy Agency said Sunday that while it had confirmed that the Fordo, Natanz and Isfahan sites had been hit, it was not immediately possible to assess the damage at the Fordo site. Until last week, U.S. stocks had been enjoying a substantial, if volatile, recovery from the lows following President Donald Trump's reciprocal tariffs announcement in April. That momentum reversed after Israel announced last weekend it had struck key Iranian military and nuclear targets, prompting retaliatory missile strikes on Israeli targets by Iran. JPMorgan analysts said Sunday that investors had voiced concerns to them last week that the Iran-Israel conflict would spread, 'and those concerns have been materialized.' 'Trump's statement that this might be the only US attack or might begin a series of attacks brought us little certainty,' the analysts added in a note to clients. 'Moreover, we do not see an obvious route to a political settlement to the military conflict, which makes us think the conflict, like the one in Gaza, could last longer than many investors think.'
Daily Mail
2 hours ago
- Daily Mail
Will summer sun spark sizzling sales at H&M?
H&M will later this week reveal whether the heatwave has boosted Britain's struggling High Street. Dismal figures last week showed retail sales tumbled 2.7 per cent in May in the biggest drop in 18 months – much steeper than the 0.5 per cent dip forecast by economists. But there are hopes the recent hot weather will have encouraged shoppers to splash the cash. The Swedish fashion group is expected to report a rise in sales for the three months to the end of May in an update on Thursday. But H&M reported weaker-than-expected sales for the first quarter of its financial year in its previous update in March. Sales rose 2 per cent to £4.2billion in the three months to February 28, slowing to 1 per cent in March.
Daily Mail
12 hours ago
- Daily Mail
Absolutely dotty! Government blows over half a million on 'vanity' makeover for website which involved moving a full stop
Ministers spent more than £500,000 of taxpayers' money on a 'vanity' makeover for the government website which critics say is little more than changing a colour and moving a dot. The site, used by millions for essential services such as tax returns and passport renewals, will see its traditional black masthead turned blue and its 'dot' coloured turquoise. The tweaks were commissioned as part of 'brand refresh' with contracts totalling £532,000 handed to global ad agency M&C Saatchi. The costly new logo, set to go live this month, has already met with ridicule from civil servants, with one mocking online: 'Did someone really get paid to move a dot?'. Others labelled it 'cheap', 'tacky' and 'absolutely diabolical'. Zia Yusuf, head of Reform UK's efficiency drive, last night branded the revamp a waste of public money. He said: 'The disrespect for taxpayers' money continues to be astounding. 'Spending more than £500,000 on changing a logo on a government website is a joke at the taxpayer's expense, quite literally. 'This is just the kind of thing we have been uncovering in county halls on a daily basis. It's abundantly clear that Whitehall also needs a visit from Reform's DOGE team.' Two contracts for the brand refresh were tendered by the previous Conservative government and carried on under Labour, according to publicly available papers. Communications giant M&C Saatchi secured deals potentially worth up to £750,000. A government source said the final bill came to £532,000, which the cost drawn from existing department budgets. The new logo was criticised on web forums used by civil servants. One said: 'As a government we are trying to maximise efficiency and save money. 'Why was this what we chose to spend time and resources on?' Another joked: 'Reform blue for the dot. Conservative blue for the background. Are they preparing us for 2029?' Elliot Keck, campaigns chief at the TaxPayers' Alliance, said: 'Taxpayers will be baffled that hundreds of thousands have been blown on minor graphic design changes. 'At a time when public services are stretched and families are feeling the pinch, shelling out for a vanity rebrand is an insult to hardworking Brits. 'Ministers should be focusing on delivering frontline services, not petty optics.' Officials defended the cost, stressing the six-figure bill included 'refreshing and extending' the brand across web, mobile and app platforms. A government spokesman said: 'This was committed to by the previous government, with two of the three contracts signed and delivered by July 2024. 'The new government then chose to turn the rebranding and research work into consumer-friendly digital products, including our upcoming App, Chat and more.' MailOnline has contacted the government for further comment. The website was last overhauled in 2012.
