Harrods, the luxury department store, has become the latest victim of cyber attackers, joining Marks & Spencer and Co-op Group in a recent wave of attacks on º£½ÇÊÓƵ retailers.
The company confirmed that there had been an "attempted to gain unauthorised access" to its systems, as reported by .
As a precautionary measure, it restricted internet access across its sites, although stores remain open and online shopping continues.
This incident highlights the growing risk faced by retailers as cyber criminals increasingly exploit shared systems, common suppliers, and peak shopping periods to cause damage and disruption.
Shobhit Gautam of HackerOne commented: "Threat actors are seizing the moment. Retailers are exposed during holidays when staffing is thin but online traffic is high."
Twice is coincidence, third time’s a pattern
Although Harrods has not confirmed any service outages, customers reported to Sky News that they were unable to make purchases earlier in the day, mirroring the widespread disruption seen during last week's attack on M&S.
Security experts suggest that these incidents may be linked to a shared vulnerability, such as a third-party service provider or common IT infrastructure used across the industry.
"A single weak link can cascade across multiple brands," stated Toby Lewis, global head of threat analysis at Darktrace.
The rise of AI-enhanced attacks and phishing campaigns are also a concern, as they enable even less experienced hackers to target high-value entities with increased precision and speed.
The overall threat landscape is deteriorating. Cyber attacks globally soared by 45 per cent in the first quarter of 2025, according to ransomware prevention firm Blackfog.
The company highlighted that attackers are increasingly infiltrating systems months prior to launching visible strikes.
Harrods has stated that it is not advising customers to take any specific actions at this point, but promised to provide updates if the situation changes.
However, with three major retailers targeted within two weeks, cyber professionals are warning that the sector is under attack – and few believe this will be the last incident.
"These attacks don't just knock out systems. They paralyse sales, break customer trust, and hit the bottom line", commented Cody Brown, chief executive of EclecticQ. "Retailers need to treat cyber resilience as a core business function – not a back-office task."
Industry figures are also calling for more transparency and preparedness. "Staying quiet isn't a strategy – it's a liability," remarked Öykü Işık, professor of cyber at IMD.
