M&S issues update on stock levels in stores after cyber attack

Marks and Spencer has issued a new update following its and confirmed it has switched off its stock check function on its website.

Shoppers can normally use the website to check if an item is available at their local store. However, this option has been disabled, with a message reading: " Stock and price are temporarily unavailable and will be back soon."

The supermarket has replied to customers on social media, saying it has turned this feature off temporarily "as it doesn't accurately reflect the stock levels in store".

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It comes after one shopper asked M&S on social media: "Is store stock check available? Or has this been disabled. Trying to locate an item? Thanks."

M&S replied: "Our online checker isn't available at the moment, as it doesn't accurately reflect the stock levels in store. Once all of our technical issues have been resolved and the ordering system is back up and running, you should be able to see what items are available where."

The supermarket confirmed it was dealing with a cyber incident after shoppers had issues with contactless payments and click and collect orders over Easter weekend.

Online orders are still paused and M&S has not said when it expects to bring this service back It has been reported that £3.8million is spent on its website and every day.

Shoppers have also complained of gaps on shelves in some stores. In an update published on social media last week, CEO Stuart Machin said the company is "really sorry" for the ongoing issues.

He said: “We are really sorry that we've not been able to offer you the service you expect from M&S over the last week. We are working day and night to manage the current cyber incident and get things back to normal for you as quickly as possible.

“Thank you from me and everyone at M&S for all the support you have shown us. We do not take it for granted and we are incredibly grateful.

“Our teams are doing the very best they can, and are ready to welcome you into our stores – whether you are shopping for food or for fashion, home and beauty this bank holiday weekend. Thank you for your support and thank you for shopping with us. We will continue to keep you updated.”

It comes after the also shut down parts of its IT system earlier this week after being targeted by “highly sophisticated” hackers. The convenience store chain later confirmed that some customer data was accessed during the data breach.

Shirine Khoury-Haq, chief executive of the Co-operative Group, told customers in an email on Tuesday afternoon that the business is still “experiencing significant disruption” because of the cyber attack.

She said: “Actively managing the severity of the attack has meant shutting down some of our systems to protect the organisation. As previously communicated, we have established that the cyber criminals were able to access a limited amount of member data.

“This is obviously extremely distressing for our colleagues and members, and I am very sorry this happened.”