The Co-operative Group has plunged to a half-year loss after suffering an £80million earnings hit from a “malicious” cyber attack in April.
Shoppers were faced with empty shelves and issues with payments during the fallout from the cyber incident in April, as a raft of retailers were hit.
The company shut off parts of its IT systems after the attack, in which hackers accessed and extracted members' personal data.
Chief executive Shirine Khoury-Haq said she was "devastated" by the impact of the incident on workers and members.
She told the BBC that "names, addresses and contact information" for all of its members were accessed.
The retailer reported a £75million underlying pre-tax loss for the six months to July 5, compared with a £3million profit a year earlier.
It said the hack wiped around £206million off sales and left it nursing an £80million earnings blow, including £20million in one-off costs.
Co-op posted a £32million underlying operating loss for the period, down from £47million in earnings a year earlier, and warned of a further, though smaller, impact in the second half of the year.
Chairwoman Debbie White said: “The first half of 2025 brought significant challenges, most notably from a malicious cyber attack. Our balance sheet strength and the magnificent response of our 53,000 colleagues enabled us to maintain vital services for our members and their communities.”
Co-op takes £80MILLION hit after hackers stole customer information in cyber attack
| GETTYThe Co-op described the hacking attempt as “sophisticated” but said it acted “quickly and decisively to temporarily shut down a number of systems to contain the threat”.
Parts of its IT network were taken offline after hackers accessed and extracted members’ personal data.
In July, the retailer confirmed that all 6.5 million members had their information stolen.
It has since said the attackers managed to copy one of its files but were unable to go further and install the ransomware they had planned.
In July, the retailer confirmed that all 6.5 million members had their information stolen
| GETTY IMAGESIt said efforts following the incident included moves to keep essential services running, such as its funerals business, while prioritising stock to rural “lifeline” stores.
It also said it supported independent co-op societies and franchise partners to minimise disruption to them, while it offered its members a £10 discount off a £40 shop as a thank you for their support throughout the disruption.
Chief executive Shirine Khoury-Haq said: “The cyber attack highlighted many of our strengths.
Without reforms to encourage greater pension savings among top earners, the retirement income gap will continue widening | GETTY“But more importantly, it also highlighted areas we need to focus on – particularly in our food business.
“We’ve already started on this journey, refining our member and customer proposition, making structural changes to our business, and setting our Co-op up for long-term success.”