M&S Are Back On Track

After weeks of tech turmoil, Marks & Spencer’s website is finally back — at least for browsing.

Early Thursday morning, the high street giant confirmed its site was live again after an overnight refresh. “Our website is open for browsing,” M&S said in a statement. “As we work to get things back to normal for our customers we are doing some overnight updates.”

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The return follows a rough few weeks for M&S, which has been reeling from a sophisticated cyber-attack that not only knocked out online orders but also triggered a full website blackout on Wednesday evening. At the time, visitors were met with the message: “Sorry you can’t browse the site currently. We’re making some updates and will be back soon.”

The attack, which unfolded over the Easter weekend, originally caused chaos for click-and-collect services and contactless payments. It escalated quickly, leading M&S to suspend all online orders completely. And the financial hit? Estimated at a painful £300 million, according to the retailer — a figure that caught analysts off guard. Some losses will be covered by insurance, but it’s still a major dent in profits.

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Customer data exposed

Adding to the chaos, M&S confirmed that some personal customer data was stolen in the breach. This includes names, phone numbers, addresses, and dates of birth — though thankfully, the company says no “usable” payment details or account passwords were taken. That said, online order histories may also have been compromised.

The cyber-attack has left a long tail of disruption. While the site is now browsable, M&S doesn’t expect normal online operations to resume until July. That’s nearly three months of interrupted digital services — a major blow for one of the UK’s biggest retailers, especially as more shoppers turn to e-commerce.

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Scattered Spider suspected

So who’s behind the hack? Authorities are investigating a cyber gang known as Scattered Spider — a group of English-speaking hackers also linked to attacks on the Co-op and Harrods. But M&S appears to have taken the biggest hit.

“Over the last few weeks, we have been managing a highly sophisticated and targeted cyber-attack, which has led to a limited period of disruption,” said M&S CEO Stuart Machin.

It’s a stark reminder of how vulnerable even legacy retail players are to increasingly advanced digital threats. As investigations continue, customers can at least return to digital window shopping — but for now, actual purchases will have to wait.