Ahold Delhaize reports no evidence of stolen customer data as systems are rebooted
The shelves may be running empty, but customer data appears to be safe.
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- Ahold Delhaize says it has no evidence that customer or employee data was stolen.
- The company is still investigating the cybersecurity incident with internal and external experts.
- Some logistics systems went offline, disrupting online grocery orders and contributing to empty shelves.
- Albert Heijn, Etos, Gall & Gall, and several US Ahold Delhaize brands have been affected.
Key Takeaways by nexos.ai, reviewed by Cybernews staff.
For now, there’s no evidence that any customer or associate data was taken during the recent cybersecurity incident affecting the company. Systems across various Ahold Delhaize brands are currently being brought back online.
In a press release, Ahold Delhaize states that both internal teams and external cybersecurity experts are still investigating the scope of the incident.
Although the firm isn’t sharing any details that could compromise security measures, it does mention that no personal information of customers has been exfiltrated or copied.
“Although our investigation is still ongoing, we have no evidence at this moment that customer and associate data was taken in this cybersecurity incident,” the retail company says.
In addition, Ahold Delhaize is cooperating with the appropriate authorities and stakeholders to deal with the current situation. The food retailer is also in the process of a controlled re-launch of some of its systems.
“We recognize that these actions have caused disruption for customers, associates and partners, but protecting our infrastructure is a top priority,” the company says, promising to provide further updates as it sees fit.
Albert Heijn, one of Ahold Delhaize’s brands, has been dealing with a cybersecurity incident since Sunday.
As a precaution, some logistics systems have been taken offline, meaning that customers can’t order their groceries online and have them delivered. There have also been reports of empty shelves due to the incident.
Suspicious server traffic
Ahold Delhaize might not want to share any details about the cybersecurity incident. However, anonymous sources in the cybersecurity community report that Albert Heijn has identified suspicious traffic on its systems, originating from servers located in Moldova, Poland, Turkey, and the United States.
“Albert Heijn apparently has evidence of the hackers’ infrastructure, which they used to scout out the systems or to steal data from Albert Heijn’s systems,” cybersecurity expert Pim Takkenberg told Dutch news outlet NOS.
In addition, Albert Heijn’s investigation shows that servers belonging to Ahold’s US division may also be involved.
“That could mean the hackers broke into those servers and used them to attack Dutch systems,” Takkenberg says, although this hasn’t been officially confirmed.
Albert Heijn isn’t the only retailer that’s been coping with the cybersecurity incident. Drugstore chain Etos, liquor store chain Gall & Gall, and all of Ahold Delhaize’s businesses in the United States, including Food Lion, Giant Food, Hannaford, Stop & Shop, and The GIANT Company, have also been affected.
