November 12, 2024 at 02:33PM
Ahold Delhaize, owner of several US grocery chains, confirmed ongoing outages due to a cybersecurity issue affecting pharmacies and e-commerce. While stores remain open, some staff reported IT difficulties, including prescription refills and mismatched invoices. Investigations are ongoing, and the company has not confirmed data compromise or provided further updates.
**Meeting Takeaways: Ahold Delhaize Cybersecurity Incident**
1. **Incident Overview**:
– Ahold Delhaize is experiencing disruptions across several US grocery stores, including Food Lion and Stop & Shop, due to a cybersecurity issue.
– The company has confirmed that certain systems were taken offline, affecting pharmacies and e-commerce operations.
2. **Actions Taken**:
– Security teams are investigating the issue with external cybersecurity experts and have notified law enforcement.
– The company emphasizes the prioritization of customer, associate, and partner security and has apologized for any inconveniences caused.
3. **Impact on Operations**:
– While stores remain open, reports indicate varied levels of disruption:
– Some stores have restored services; others are utilizing personal hotspots for operations.
– Pharmacies experienced IT issues, although these have reportedly been resolved.
– Complaints regarding delayed or missing deliveries and mismatched invoice figures have emerged.
4. **Customer and Staff Feedback**:
– Staff and customers have taken to social media to share experiences related to IT issues, including pharmacy prescription refills.
– Discussions in the Food Lion subreddit have noted staff concerns and operational challenges.
5. **Data Security Concerns**:
– There are concerns from staff regarding potential compromise of financial data, with reports of fraudulent transactions linked to some employees’ debit cards.
– No confirmation has been given by Ahold Delhaize regarding any data compromise.
6. **Website and Accessibility Issues**:
– The websites for Hannaford and other US brands remain down or inaccessible, indicating widespread issues across the company’s digital platforms.
7. **Scale of Impact**:
– Approximately 2,000 stores across the US are potentially affected, with over 1,000 belonging to Food Lion which serves a significant customer base weekly.
8. **Next Steps**:
– Further information and updates from Ahold Delhaize are pending as the investigation into the cybersecurity incident continues.
**Action Items**:
– Monitor updates from Ahold Delhaize regarding system restorations and cybersecurity measures.
– Continue to assess the impact on operational efficiency and customer satisfaction across affected stores.