M&S: WFH staff locked out of systems amid cyber attack fallout

M&S has shut remote-working employees out of some of its IT systems as it struggles to recover from the fallout of a cyberattack last week.

The high street giant closed some of its programmes that staff use to log into the internal IT systems when working outside of the office, The Times reported.

Cybersecurity experts said the move was most likely made to stop the attack spreading throughout the retailer’s IT infrastructure.

Sources close to the company said staff could still work from home, but that access to its internal systems had been scaled back while it dealt with the attack.

While M&S has declined to comment on the nature of the incident, The Telegraph reported that the retailer was hit with a ransomware attack from a criminal gang.

On Friday (25 April), M&S suspended online orders via its UK & Ireland websites and apps and some M&S International operated websites as part of its “proactive management” of the incident.

“We continue to manage the incident proactively and the M&S team – supported by leading experts – is working extremely hard to restore online operations and continue to serve customers well,” it said.

The retailer paused click and collect orders in the week following the cyber incident after customers were left unable to use contactless payments or click-and-collect services over the Bank holiday weekend.

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