The Works closes stores after cyber attack

The Works has been forced to close some of its stores and suspend new stock deliveries following a cyber attack.

The chain confirmed today (5th April) that five of its 526 branches have been shut since last week after hackers attempted to access its computer systems, causing problems with the tills. Customers are now facing longer delivery times for orders.

The chain stressed that no customer payment details had been compromised in the incident, reported to be a ransomware attack, but it had not yet established whether any other data had been affected. The Information Commissioner’s Office has been informed.

A spokesperson said: “There has been some limited disruption to trading and business operations, including the closure of some stores due to till issues. Replenishment deliveries to the group’s stores were suspended temporarily and the normal delivery window for the fulfilment of online orders was extended, but store deliveries are expected to resume imminently and the normal online service levels are progressively being reintroduced. The company does not anticipate that this incident will have a material adverse impact on its forecasts or financial position.

“Customers can continue to shop safely at The Works, both in store and online. All debit and credit card payment data are processed securely outside the group’s systems, via accredited third-party networks and, therefore, there is no risk that this payment data has been accessed improperly.”

The Works said it had been alerted to the attack thanks to its security firewall and had taken action to protect the business and its customers. This included appointing external forensic cyber security experts whose investigations and recovery work are ongoing.