Food Lion and Stop & Shop Owner Still Digging Out From Cyberattack

Ahold Delhaize, the Dutch parent of Food Lion, Stop & Shop, Hannaford, Giant Food and The GIANT Company, is still bringing websites and apps back online after a cyberattack it first disclosed on Oct. 12. BleepingComputer reports that the company took systems offline across Europe and the US as a precaution, while stores stayed open. In an Oct. 19 update, the company said e-commerce for its US brands should return “in the coming days.” Its investigation so far has found no evidence that sensitive customer, employee or partner data was taken.

Europe is further along. Albert Heijn’s site and app are back, and its home deliveries are due to restart Oct. 23. Delhaize’s Belgian online store is fully working again, and most sites in Central and Southeastern Europe are back up. The company hasn’t said what kind of attack it was or whether any systems were encrypted. No ransomware group has publicly claimed it, and the company’s statement doesn’t use the word ransomware. Ahold Delhaize notified the Dutch National Cyber Security Centre and filed a report with Dutch police. In the US, a Reddit post cited by BleepingComputer says Stop & Shop workers couldn’t see their schedules or pay stubs. The company hasn’t confirmed that.

This is the company’s second major incident in two years. A November 2024 attack on its US systems ended in the theft of personal, financial and health data belonging to more than 2.2 million people, according to BleepingComputer. The INC Ransom gang claimed that one.

For defenders

Ahold Delhaize hasn’t released technical details, an initial access vector, a malware family or indicators, and no group has claimed the attack. Retailers and suppliers that connect to Ahold Delhaize systems should check those links and expect brand-themed phishing aimed at both shoppers and staff.

What it means for you

If you shop at Food Lion, Stop & Shop, Hannaford, Giant or GIANT, you can still buy groceries in the store. Online ordering, delivery and the apps may be down or spotty until the company finishes restoring them. Nothing so far suggests your account details were stolen, but the investigation is still going. The bigger risk for now is scammers. A well-known brand in the news attracts fake “outage refund,” “free gift card” and “verify your account” emails and texts. A real store won’t text you a link asking for your password or card number to fix an outage.

Do this now

1. Type the store’s web address yourself or open its official app. Don’t click links in emails or texts about the outage, refunds or rewards.
2. Ignore any message asking you to “re-verify” your loyalty account, password or payment card. Check your account by logging in directly instead.
3. If you reuse your grocery account password anywhere else, change it now. A password manager makes unique passwords easy to keep.
4. Watch your card statements for charges you don’t recognize, especially if you saved a card for delivery orders.