M&S has issued a major online shopping and delivery update for customers after a crippling cyber attack.
The posh retailer has reintroduced a selection of third-party brands on its website including Adidas, Columbia and Lilybod.
M&S has re-added third-party brands to its website[/caption]
Shoppers can also buy Girlfriend Collective, New Balance, Asics and Under Armour branded items.
Meanwhile, the high street giant has reduced its standard home delivery wait times from 10 days to five for customers in England, Scotland and Wales.
The retailer’s website says home delivery in Northern Ireland will resume “in the coming weeks”.
Click and collect, next day delivery and UK nominated day delivery for fashion items are still unavailable with services set to be restored “as soon as possible”.
The update comes as M&S emerges from a crippling cyber attack that first struck in April.
The incident saw click and collect services across UK stores go down, as well as customer information stolen.
The group suspected to be behind the cyber attack is known as “Scattered Spider” – a notorious cyber criminal-collective.
M&S has said it expects disruption from the attack to continue into July.
At the end of May, boss Stuart Machin also said in an interview with The Daily Mail he “went into shock” after first learning of the attack.
He also compared the financial toll from the attack to the recent hike to employer National Insurance Contributions, national minimum age and added costs associated with new environmental packaging rules.
Speaking to The Sun, he admitted hackers had dealt a heavy blow to its turnaround but was confident of weathering the storm.
He described the decision to switch off online orders as “chopping off the threat at its knees” and said he realised “that we had to go through the pain to come back later”.
He called the early stages of the crisis as going into “survival mode”.
And he added the chaos of the last month had been “a challenging time — but it is just a moment in time”.
Co-op and Harrods also targeted
Co-op and luxury retailer Harrods were also hit with hacking attempts in May.
Co-op was forced to shut down part of its IT system following the incident.
The retailer told staff at the time it had “taken proactive steps to keep our systems safe”.
However, it later emerged a “significant” amount of customer data was stolen, including personal information such as names, dates of birth and contact information.
The retailer said members’ passwords, credit card details and transaction information were not leaked.
Harrods shoppers meanwhile were warned it had “restricted internet access” after the attempted breach left some customers struggling to pay.
What is a cyber attack?
A CYBER attack is any deliberate attempt to disrupt, damage, or gain unauthorised access to computer systems, networks, or digital devices.
These attacks can target individuals, businesses, or even governments, and their motives can range from financial gain to political disruption.
Cyber attacks can take many forms, employing various techniques to achieve their malicious goals.
Common types of cyber attacks include:
- Malware: Malicious software designed to damage or gain control of a system. Examples include viruses, worms, ransomware, and spyware.
- Phishing: Deceptive attempts to trick individuals into revealing sensitive information such as usernames, passwords, or credit card details, often through fake emails or websites.
- Denial-of-Service (DoS) Attacks: Flooding a network or server with traffic to overwhelm its resources and make it unavailable to legitimate users.
- SQL Injection: Exploiting vulnerabilities in website databases to gain unauthorised access to data.
- Ransomware: Malware that encrypts a victim’s data and demands a ransom for its release.
- Social Engineering: Manipulating individuals into performing actions or divulging confidential information.
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