Marks & Spencer has relaunched its click and collect service following a cyber attack that impacted its operations. The supermarket had to halt online orders and experienced disruptions to contactless payments in stores after being targeted over the Easter weekend in April. The company was compelled to temporarily close part of its IT system.
In June, Marks & Spencer began gradually reopening online orders and has now announced the resumption of its click and collect service, allowing customers to purchase items online and collect them in-store.
In a separate incident, customer data such as names, email addresses, addresses, and dates of birth were compromised in the cyber attack, although no card or payment information was accessed. The supermarket has advised customers to be cautious if contacted by individuals claiming to represent Marks & Spencer and to change their passwords if they have not accessed the Sparks app since the breach.
The cyber attack is projected to cost the company approximately £300 million. Despite this setback, Marks & Spencer had reported a significant increase in annual profits before the attack, reaching £875.5 million, the highest in over 15 years, attributed to its successful turnaround program.
Last month, CEO Stuart Machin had expressed confidence that operations would be fully restored by August. He assured shareholders at the annual general meeting that investigations into the cybercrime were ongoing, with arrests made and efforts continuing to bring the perpetrators to justice.
Marks & Spencer had also extended gratitude towards its employees by enhancing staff discounts and extending benefits to contractors and partners across its supply chain.
