Apparently, the data is related to online orders between November 2018 and October 2020. The company assured that the affected customers are being informed about the breach. 

It further added that the affected data was “limited.” The company claimed that payment card information was secure and that there is no reason to believe that hackers had gained access to customer passwords. 

In regards to the data breach, the chief financial officer of JD Sports, Neil Greenhalgh stated “We want to apologize to those customers who may have been affected by this incident […] Protecting the data of our customers is an absolute priority for JD.” 

The hack targeted online purchases made under the JD, Size, Millets, Blacks, Scotts, and MilletSport brands. It is believed that the business discovered the attack recently, but that only historical data was accessed. 

Reportedly, the company is working in collaboration with some of the “leading cyber-security experts” and is engaging with the UK’s Information Commissioner’s Office (ICO) in regard to the incident. 

Mr. Greenhalgh has advised the affected customers to be “vigilant about potential scam e-mails, calls and texts.” 

UK Companies Vulnerable to Cyber-attacks 

In recent times, numerous UK Businesses have witnessed at least one cyber-attacks. For an instance: 

• Earlier this month, Royal Mail was a victim of a ransomware attack that resulted in its halt of post and parcel delivery operations overseas. 

• In December 2022, the Guardian newspaper was targeted by a malicious ransomware attack. 

According to Lauren Wills-Dixon, solicitor and an expert in data privacy at law firm Gordons, businesses are needed to be prepared for potential cyber-attacks since they are among the most common targets for threat actors. The reason for the same is the large amount of customer data they have in store. 

She also added that the increased use of technology by the industry “to reduce overheads and streamline operations has raised the risk even further.” 

“In this new world, it's not 'if' but 'when' a cyber-attack will happen.”