Stop & Shop hit by cybersecurity disruption, parent company says

The grocery chain’s parent company Ahold Delhaize said late last week that its US outlets, which also include Hannaford supermarkets, were forced to take some of their systems offline, disrupting its pharmacy and e-commerce business.

The Dutch food conglomerate, said in a statement that it had recently discovered an unspecified “issue” within its American networks. The company has hired outside experts to assist its own security team with an investigation and has reported the disruption to law enforcement.

Efforts to investigate prompted the company to disconnect some systems to protect them, it said.

A Stop & Shop spokesperson told the Globe on Tuesday that Ahold Delhaize’s investigation was ongoing.

“Our teams are taking steps to assess and mitigate the issue. We will continue to take actions to further protect our systems,” Caroline Medeiros, Stop & Shop’s corporate communications manager, said in an email.

Customers may be unable to buy certain products from Stop & Shop stores as a result of the cybersecurity issue, she added.

“Our mitigation efforts have impacted the shipment of select products to our stores,” Medeiros said. “We are working to ensure our shelves are restocked in the coming days.”

The issue reportedly has affected the ability of some stores to accept payments via gift cards or debit cards.

“This issue and subsequent mitigating actions have affected certain Ahold Delhaize USA brands and services including a number of pharmacies and certain e-commerce operations,” the company said in its statement on Friday. “Each of Ahold Delhaize USA’s brands’ stores are open and serving customers. We will continue to take actions to further protect our systems.”

Customers looking to refill their prescriptions or get new prescriptions may need to visit the stores in person for assistance, Medeiros told the Globe.

The Quincy, Mass.-based retail chain has more than 400 outlets across New England and the region. The retailer has 25 outlets in Rhode Island and nearly 120 locations in Massachusetts, according to the company. Hannaford has 36 locations in New Hampshire, and 16 in Massachusetts.

At a Stop & Shop store in Providence on Tuesday evening, some customers said they did not notice any disruption during their shopping experience.

Sharon Shelton, 64, told the Globe she shops at the retailer regularly, and picked up some cereal, crackers, coconut milk, and strawberries.

“Every item I needed, I found easily,” Shelton said. “I went to self-checkout and that was easy. Uneventful, very standard.”

Dona Lombardi, 65, said she is a regular shopper as well and bought flowers and fresh fruit on Tuesday. She described her experience as normal and paid by credit card. “It was fine,” she said.

The company has been investing in its e-commerce operations. In its 2023 annual report, Ahold Delhaize CEO Frans Muller said the company has continued to invest in that segment of its business in the US through its own proprietary platform called PRISM.

In its latest quarterly results announced in early November, the company confirmed its closure of 32 Stop & Shop outlets. Muller said that over the last year, Ahold Delhaize opened 70 new “pick from store” locations in the US, where customers purchase goods online and collect them at a retailer’s location.

This story has been updated with a comment from a Stop & Shop spokesperson.

Omar Mohammed can be reached at [email protected]. Follow him on Twitter (X) @shurufu.