Harrods, London’s prestigious department store, has confirmed it was targeted by hackers, marking the third major UK retailer to face cybersecurity incidents within a week.

“We recently experienced attempts to gain unauthorised access to some of our systems,” Harrods stated. “Our seasoned IT security team immediately took proactive steps to keep systems safe and as a result we have restricted internet access at our sites today.”

Despite the security measures, Harrods assured customers that all physical locations—including the flagship Knightsbridge store, H beauty stores, and airport outlets—remain open. Online shopping through harrods.com continues to function normally, with the company noting that no special actions are required from customers at this time.

The luxury retailer has not disclosed whether systems were breached or if data was compromised, though the restriction of certain platforms suggests an active incident response.

## Wave of Attacks Targeting UK Retailers

This incident follows recent cyberattacks on two other prominent British retailers:

– **Marks and Spencer** confirmed a cyberattack last week that disrupted its online ordering systems, contactless payments, and Click & Collect service. The attack has been linked to threat actors using “Scattered Spider” tactics who deployed DragonForce ransomware.

– **Co-op** disclosed a cyber incident involving attempted network intrusions. An internal email from their Chief Digital and Information Officer revealed more extensive measures, including disabled VPN access and warnings to staff about vigilance when using email and Microsoft Teams.

The similarity in attack patterns suggests social engineering may have been the initial entry point in multiple cases, though law enforcement has not yet issued official advisories regarding these incidents.