British retail giant Marks & Spencer (M&S) and the iconic Knightsbridge department store, Harrods, have become the latest to be hit by cyberattacks in the UK.Online orders at M&S, one of the United Kingdom’s most prominent high-street stores, remain paused and the attack has already cost the company millions of pounds in lost revenues.
Here is what we know about the incident, its effect and where things stand.
What happened in the cyberattack on Harrods and Marks and Spencer?
April 21: Customers begin reporting issues making contactless payments and booking click-and-collect services (ordering online and picking up in store) at Marks & Spencer. Later that day, the company confirms it is dealing with a “cyber incident”.
April 25: M&S suspends all online orders and pulls its more than 200 job listings offline. Signs begin appearing in stores warning of limited food availability. Gift cards and returns at M&S food stores cannot be processed.
April 28: Some M&S stores report empty shelves and a shortage of popular items like Percy Pigs sweets. About 200 agency workers at the Castle Donington warehouse in the UK’s East Midlands are told to stay home. Stores continue to suffer from shortages.
April 29 – May 2: M&S’s website remains unable to process online orders; job applications are still paused. The retailer has issued no further public updates. Physical store …