ASOS shares slide after hackers target online retailer

LONDON, Oct 6 (Reuters) - Shares in ASOS fell 10% on Tuesday after the British online fashion retailer warned that some customer information may have been accessed following the unauthorised sending of a notification to shoppers.

The group said it was investigating unauthorised activity involving third-party platforms that it uses to communicate with customers.

It said it took immediate action to restrict access to the platforms and was working with internal and external specialist advisers, as well as all relevant authorities.

"Basic personal information including name and contact details may have been accessed. We do not believe that payment-card information or account passwords, were impacted," it said.

The retailer's website and app were operating as normal, with no current disruption to operations, it said.

British companies and institutions have been increasingly hit by aggressive and regular cyber and ransomware attacks in recent years. The British Library, a blood testing service, the London Underground, Marks & Spencer, the Co-op and Jaguar Land Rover are some that have suffered months of disruption due to such breaches.

HACKING GROUP 'XUANYE GROUP' CLAIMS RESPONSIBILITY

The notifications to ASOS shoppers - addressed to ASOS' data protection officer and IT department - read, "we have fully compromised the Snowflake instance. Engage with us, or we will leak it."

Snowflake is a data storage firm, whose tools are used by thousands of companies.

A hacking group calling itself the "Xuanye group" claimed credit for compromising ASOS' Snowflake repository in the push alert sent to users of the retailer's app. The message included a link to a Telegram channel, where the group said that payment information "is not affected," and that the ASOS app "is safe to use."

"The incident involves customer information, it is safe on our server, and it will not be touched for a designated period," the group said in a message posted to the channel.

A spokesperson for Snowflake said it launched an investigation as soon as it became aware of the notification. "At this time, we can report that we have found no compromise of the Snowflake platform."

Hackers have previously targeted organisations' Snowflake data repositories. In 2024, Google's cybersecurity unit Mandiant detailed a widespread hacking spree targeting Snowflake data associated with at least 165 customers.

ASOS said that it has cyber insurance, including basic continuity insurance, but said it was too early to quantify any potential impact on trading.

Shares in the group were up more than 60% so far this year, though they are well below a peak in 2018 amid tough competition in fast fashion. The company has been divesting assets and last month provided an upbeat profit forecast for fiscal 2026.

(Reporting by Yadarisa Shabong and Yamini Kalia in Bengaluru and James Davey in London; Additional reporting by AJ Vicens in Washington; Editing by Vijay Kishore and Susan Fenton)