When your neighborhood supermarket loses its systems, the problem shows right away: an online order that will not go through, a delivery that runs late. That is what happened to the Dutch group Ahold Delhaize, which confirmed its IT outages were caused by an attack.
What the company confirmed
According to The Record, the group noticed suspicious activity in its systems the previous week and confirmed it was caused by malicious actors. It took systems offline across most of its brands in the US and Europe. Online services were disrupted in the US, the Netherlands and Belgium, and physical stores stayed open. US brands named include Food Lion and Stop & Shop.
The company filed a police report in the Netherlands on Monday and says it notified Dutch cybersecurity authorities within 24 hours of detecting the incident.
How recovery stood
The Albert Heijn, Etos and Gall & Gall websites and apps were back, but Albert Heijn home deliveries were not expected until Friday. Online shopping in the US was not yet working, with a return expected in the coming days. E-commerce was restored in Belgium and in Central and Southeastern Europe.
What is not known
Ahold Delhaize says it has no evidence that sensitive customer, employee or partner data was stolen, but the investigation continues. It did not describe the type of attack or say whether a ransom was involved. CEO Frans Muller apologized and said taking systems offline was a necessary precaution. The group had already suffered an attack in 2024 that hit US supermarkets, and more than 2.2 million people had information stolen.
How to protect yourself
- Be suspicious of emails and texts about orders and deliveries from supermarkets these days. Scammers exploit the headlines.
- Check the official app instead of clicking links in messages to track an order.
- Change your password for the store account if you reuse it on other services.
- Turn on two-step verification on shopping accounts that offer it.
- Follow the company’s notices, especially if you shopped at the affected brands.
