Shoppers vent anger as M&S cyber incident disrupts Click and Collect

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Marks and Spencer (M&S) has confirmed it has been dealing with a “cyber incident” that disrupted some of its services in recent days. The company apologized to customers after having to make “small changes” to store operations temporarily “to protect you and our business.” This disruption affected the Click and Collect service and contactless payment systems, sparking numerous complaints on social media about delays.

In a statement issued on Tuesday, March 22, M&S chief executive Stuart Machin extended his apologies and reassured customers: “There is no need for you to take any action at this time and if the situation changes, we will let you know.”

While stores remained open and the website and app continued to operate normally, M&S warned of “some limited delays to your Click & Collect order,” which they are working hard to resolve. The company is collaborating with cybersecurity experts to investigate and manage the incident, while also reporting it to data protection authorities and the National Cyber Security Centre.

Jake Moore, global cybersecurity adviser at Eset, commented, “This highlights the significant impact cyber attacks can have in the public domain.” He explained that many ransomware attacks are handled quietly, but when customers are directly affected, the consequences become more visible.

Moore added, “Luckily, it seems no customer data has been taken in the attack but this situation widens the reality that card-only payments may not yet be the answer in a time when cyber attacks are just as prevalent as they’ve ever been.”

Over the weekend, some shoppers expressed frustration over complications in stores, including the inability to use gift cards or vouchers. One customer described the situation as a “total failure for customers” and said, “A simple message out to customers to save a journey would have worked a treat.” There were also reports of a shopper unable to make purchases with a gift card at an M&S store in Liverpool.

M&S acknowledged ongoing technical issues affecting gift card processing and the Click and Collect service. This incident is part of a larger pattern of technology-related disruptions hitting major high street retailers. For example, last year Morrisons faced severe problems during the Christmas period, leading to cancelled deliveries and missing discounts on key grocery shopping days.

The challenges are not limited to retail stores, as the first two months of the year saw significant outages causing widespread inconvenience. Barclays Bank experienced major IT glitches in January that disrupted its app and online services, with reports suggesting the bank could face compensation costs as high as £12.5 million.