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The Stop & Shop Cyberattack Disrupts the Omni-Channel Supply Chain

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My mom called me to tell me about a cyberattack. I can’t make this stuff up. She said that she had recently gone to Stop & Shop, an East-coast grocery chain with more than 300 locations because she needed a cucumber. But they were out of cucumbers. She said they were also very low on lettuce and tomatoes. She was very upset about it.

Being the OG tech guru of our family, my mother “Googled” Stop & Shop when she got home and discovered its parent company, Ahold Delhaize, had “recently detected a cybersecurity issue within its US network,” according to its website on Nov. 8, 2024.

ahold delhaize statement

According to Cybernews, “Ahold Delhaize uses an omnichannel customer-centric business model to integrate all of a brand’s channels – including physical stores, apps, websites, social media, and more.”

As of the time of this writing, no hacking groups have taken credit for the incident. Some are speculating that it could be a case of ransomware, and maybe the ransom was paid. The impact also included some Food Lion locations, which is also owned by Ahold Delhaize, as well as Hannaford, who apparently only suffered a website attack. Some stores were also not able to process debit and gift card payments.

According to McKinsey, a successful omnichannel strategy relies on seven building blocks:

  1. Customer-centric supply chain strategy
  2. Network and ecosystem leveraging information, assets and capabilities
  3. Operating model and change management
  4. Digitization and process automation based on data and analytics
  5. End to End (E2E) planning and information flow
  6. Node operations for fulfillment
  7. Transportation and logistic service providers (LSP) management

The problem here is that all of the above omnichannel building blocks rely on a safe computer network to share information, and when that network is attacked, multiple things are affected, because nearly everything is all connected. Silos of information have been removed, but so has network segmentation. This is why the websites, the debit cards and the store shelves were all impacted by the cyberattack. Don’t forget that many customers order groceries online — a huge trend since the pandemic.

McKinsey explains “e-commerce fulfillment is much more complex than traditional brick-and-mortar or wholesaler fulfillment. When customers can order 24/7, demand is less predictable and more difficult to shape. Order sizes are significantly lower, and the number of products offered continuously rises. The increase in speed and complexity drives up fulfillment costs. In our experience, an online order’s cost per unit can easily be four to five times higher than traditional brick-and-mortar replenishment and ten times higher than wholesale fulfillment. All the while, customers demand a seamless omnichannel journey”

They company said grocery stores shelves were restocked in time for Thanksgiving. They also offered free coffee and treats at some locations for a few days.

I decided to check with my local threat intelligence expert (mom) and ask her for an update. She said she went back to Stop & Shop November 22, and they had restocked their shelves. She was happy to get her salad ingredients, and said the meat was also restocked. She said that she didn’t see any free coffee or cookies, but she will work hard to verify that. If there is anything my mom loves more than a fresh cucumber, it is coffee and cookies.

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