Four people arrested over M&S, Co-op and Harrods cyberattacks
National Crime Agency seizes three male suspects as well as a 20-year-old woman during operations in London and the West Midlands.
British police have arrested four people during the investigation into cyber attacks targeting M&S, the Co-op and Harrods.
Cops from the National Crime Agency (NCA) took two males aged 19, another aged 17 and a 20-year-old female into custody at their home addresses in the West Midlands and London this morning.
They were arrested on suspicion offences under the Computer Misuse Act as well as blackmail, money laundering and participating in the activities of an organised crime group. A number of electronic devices were seized for further investigation.
They are now in custody and being questioned by officers from the NCA's National Cyber Crime Unit in relation to three attacks which took place in April this year.
Deputy Director Paul Foster, head of the NCA's National Cyber Crime Unit, said: "Since these attacks took place, specialist NCA cybercrime investigators have been working at pace and the investigation remains one of the Agency's highest priorities.
"Today's arrests are a significant step in that investigation but our work continues, alongside partners in the UK and overseas, to ensure those responsible are identified and brought to justice.
"Cyber attacks can be hugely disruptive for businesses and I'd like to thank M&S, Co-op and Harrods for their support to our investigations. Hopefully this signals to future victims the importance of seeking support and engaging with law enforcement as part of the reporting process. The NCA and policing are here to help."
Panic on the High Street
After a cyberattack, M&S suspended online orders for several weeks and some customers encountered empty shelves.
On Wednesday, April 30, the Co-op announced that it had been forced to shut down call centre and back office operations. The chain is owned by its members and runs more than 2,300 food stores across Britain.
Harrods later announced it had "restricted internet access at our sites" following an attack of undisclosed severity.
A group called Scattered Spider was recently linked to incidents in industries including aviation and insurance.
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