Under Siege: Cyber-Attacks Disrupt Global Businesses.

Cyber-attacks are currently dominating the business news. With attacks happening to well known large companies like Marks and Spencer, Jaguar Land Rover and Asahi Brewing it is a big concern for businesses and individuals alike.

The attack on Marks and Spencer happened in April this year and was conducted by a group called Scattered Spider. The attack brought online operations to a complete stop. This had a huge impact on the click and collect service M&S runs especially during summer time and back to school markets. Whilst the retailer is hopeful that some of its losses will be covered by insurance the impact to the business is devastating.

Jaguar Land Rover have also been the target of an attack. With their factories shut for almost a month and systems turned off in the UK, Slovakia and Brazil. The business are hopeful and are rebuilding in stages, with the first stage was to get the IT systems back up and running. However a return to full production could still be months away. Workers have been at home waiting for the factories to restart.

In the past few days Japanese brewing company Asahi revealed that they have been hit by a cyber-attack causing a “system failure” affecting shipping and operations. An attack like this could potentially lead to an interruption of its business, create cashflow issues, and damage their brand.

Another concern with attacks is the leaking of customer data. Whilst Asahi confirmed no customer data had been leaked the attack on M&S did see customer and staff data accessed by the attackers. M&S chief executive Stuart Machin said the company was writing to customers to inform them that "unfortunately, some personal customer information has been taken". The retailer advised that customers would be prompted to reset account passwords "for extra peace of mind".

The National Crime agency (NCA) have advised that four people have been arrested over the attacks on Marks and Spencer. One man was from Latvia and the other three people from the UK. Paul Foster, head of the NCA's National Cyber Crime Unit, said the arrests were a "significant step" in its investigation. "But our work continues, alongside partners in the UK and overseas, to ensure those responsible are identified and brought to justice," he added.

As a user of the internet and online accounts it is a valuable reminder to keep your passwords secure. Also to have different passwords for different websites and to update these regularly. For the businesses who are been targeted a greater increase in internet and system security is vital. It also needs focus on segmenting critical systems, ensuring backup processes for production and logistics, stress-testing supplier networks, and planning for continuity of payroll and finance if main IT systems are hacked.

Cyber attacks impacts have devastated global businesses.