Black Friday IKEA ransomware attack cost company millions

Fourlis Group, a company operating IKEA stores in several European countries, said the hacker attack cost it tens of millions of dollars.

Attackers breached the company’s systems two days before last year’s Black Friday, impacting Fourlis Group assets in Greece, Cyprus, Bulgaria, and Romania. While at the time of the attack, it was unclear which part of the company’s business was affected, it turns out its IKEA stores were.

According to a recently published press release on Fourlis Group’s financial results, the attack impacted the group's furnishing segment, its IKEA stores. The company claims that the attack caused temporary disruptions.

After the attack, local media reported that the hacker intrusion lasted for over two weeks, causing disruptions to IKEA’s online stores and customer management system,

Meanwhile, Fourlis Group’s press release indicates that the attack impacted the company’s sales by €15 million ($17 million). The company claims that as of March of this year, all company systems were fully restored, with the impact completely eliminated.

“In late 2024, we faced a cybersecurity incident that temporarily disrupted operations. However, we responded swiftly and effectively, protecting data, restoring systems, and safeguarding the Group’s profitability,” Fourlis CEO was quoted as saying in the press release.

Reportedly, the company did not pay the ransom demand, opting to suffer the consequences and reinvest in its IT sector. However, if that were the case, it’s highly likely that attackers would opt to publish the stolen data.

So far, no ransomware group seems to have claimed responsibility for the attack.

It’s hardly the first time IKEA stores have been targeted by hackers. In 2022, the ransomware gang Vice Society breached IKEA Morocco and IKEA Kuwait and posted the company on the cartel’s dark web blog.