Marks & Spencer Faces Significant Losses After Cyber Attack

Marks & Spencer anticipates a loss of around £300 million due to a cyber attack that has disrupted online orders and impacted in-store stock levels.

This revelation comes as the company reported a 22% increase in annual pre-tax profits, reaching £876 million, despite the recent cyber incidents.

M&S noted that prior to the attack, they had over £400 million in net capital, indicating they were in a solid financial position. They believe the financial damage will be somewhat alleviated by insurance and other measures.

The UK’s largest clothing retailer, which also sells food and household goods, has been trying to bounce back for the past month after its IT systems were compromised over the Easter weekend.

The cyber attack led to a halt in orders through their website, which includes a range of products from apparel to home goods, and includes delivery services to their online food partner, Ocado.

Additionally, M&S has acknowledged that some personal information belonging to thousands of customers—like names, addresses, dates of birth, and order history—was affected during the breaches.

The attacks, attributed to a hacking group known as “scattered spiders,” occurred just days before a similar incident targeted another cooperative, with the involvement of Harod.