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The Co-op has shut down parts of its IT systems in response to hackers attempting to gain access to them.<\/p>\n
It said the “proactive measures” it had taken to fend off the attack had had a “small impact” on its call centre and back office.<\/p>\n
Meanwhile, The Metropolitan Police has confirmed it’s looking into the major cyber attack at fellow retailer Marks & Spencer (M&S).<\/p>\n
“Detectives from the Met’s cyber crime unit are investigating,” it said in a statement.<\/p>\n
It is not known whether there is any link between the two incidents.<\/p>\n
There are more than 2,500 Co-op supermarkets in the UK, as well as 800 funeral homes. It also provides food to Nisa shops.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n
A spokesperson confirmed its shops and funeral homes were operating as usual following the attempted hack.<\/p>\n
“We are working hard to reduce any disruption to our services and would like to thank our colleagues, members, partners and suppliers for their understanding during this period,” they said.<\/p>\n
“We are not asking our members or customers to do anything differently at this point.”<\/p>\n
It comes as M&S enters the second week of a cyber attack<\/a> that has caused chaos costing it millions of pounds in lost sales.<\/p>\n The retailer has not said what took out its online ordering systems and left empty shelves in stores.<\/p>\n Ciaran Martin, the founding Chief Executive of the National Cyber Security Centre (NCSC), told the Today programme on BBC Radio 4 on Wednesday it had “serious” consequences for M&S.<\/p>\n “It is a highly disruptive event and a very difficult one for them to deal with,” he said.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n Experts have told the BBC they believe the cyber attack affecting M&S is a result of ransomware called DragonForce.<\/p>\n Ransomware is malicious software which locks an owner out of their computer or network and scrambles their data – with the criminals demanding a fee to unlock it.<\/p>\n It is not known whether the Co-op discovered the hacking attempt as a result of any extra security checks following the cyber attack on its high street rival.<\/p>\n Daniel Card, cyber expert at BCS, the chartered institute for IT, said it was “very rare” for a firm to take systems offline after an attempted hack.<\/p>\n He told the BBC a company taking its system offline like this generally indicated a “loss of control.”<\/p>\n Scott Dawson, head of payment processing firm Decta, said the hacking attempt “exposed alarming vulnerabilities” and should serve as a warning to others.<\/p>\n “Retailers can no longer afford to treat resilience as optional as this becomes more of a trend,” he said.<\/p>\n There have been similar hacking attempts on supermarket chains in the past, with Morrisons being impacted by an incident in December 2024<\/a>.<\/p>\n M&S has reported its cyber attack to the National Cyber Security Centre (NCSC).<\/p>\n The BBC understands the body is urging other retailers to be vigilant. <\/p>\n An NCSC spokesperson said: “The NCSC routinely engages with a whole range of organisations about the cyber threats that the UK faces and regularly reminds them about the steps they can take to be as resilient as possible.”<\/p>\n<\/div>\n