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The Co-op revealed that it incurred a loss of at least £206 million in revenue due to a cyber-attack earlier this year. In April, hackers infiltrated the retailer’s IT networks, causing payment issues, shortages of goods in stores, and compromising customer data. Co-op chair Debbie White described the attack as “malicious” and highlighted the significant challenges faced in the first half of 2025. The company reported an underlying pre-tax loss of £75 million in the six months leading up to 5 July, a sharp decline from the £3 million profit recorded in the same period the previous year.
Aside from the cyber-attack, Co-op’s profits were impacted by rising staffing costs and regulatory hurdles. The full extent of the attack’s financial impact is anticipated to be even greater, with residual effects expected to persist into the latter half of the year. White emphasized the need for the group to reconstruct itself “better and stronger” to navigate future challenges and opportunities. Despite these setbacks, Co-op reported total group revenue of £5.48 billion, down from £5.6 billion in the corresponding period of 2024.
The cyber-attack in April led to logistical disruptions, including depleted store shelves and payment processing issues. The incident predominantly affected rural areas where Co-op serves as the primary supermarket option. Following initial understatements, Co-op acknowledged that all 6.5 million member customers had their data compromised. The company’s funeral homes resorted to manual systems to cope with the attack. Chief executive Shirine Khoury-Haq expressed pride in the business’s response to the breach, acknowledging the strengths revealed as well as areas necessitating improvement.
The Co-op’s encounter with cybercrime coincided with a challenging period marked by escalating costs and diminishing consumer confidence. The company had forecast over £200 million in costs and budgetary constraints for 2025, including an £80 million impact from shoplifting. While fellow retailers like Marks & Spencer and Harrods also faced cyber threats, Co-op managed to resume normal operations swiftly due to early detection of the attack. Hackers implicated in the breach disclosed that they had accessed the company’s systems long before detection, although Co-op’s swift disconnection of internet from IT networks thwarted ransomware deployment. In a parallel incident, carmaker Jaguar Land Rover endured a cyber-attack, compelling the shutdown of IT networks and halting production at UK factories until at least October, affecting suppliers and employees alike
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