ASOS alerts customers to data breach as shares fall by 14%

ASOS has released as statement after customers received a threatening message on Tuesday evening, indicating the retailer had been hacked.

“Dear Asos DPO [data protection officer] and IT, we have fully compromised the Snowflake instance,” the text said.

“Engage with us, or we will leak it."

Snowflake is an online data storage platform.

The message was sent to customers in the UK and Australia.

The fashion retailer giant responded in a statement almost immediately, confirming to users that it's “investigating unauthorised activity” and that “basic personal information including name and contact details may have been accessed.”

It said: “We are investigating unauthorised activity involving third-party platforms that we use to communicate with customers. We took immediate action to restrict access to the notification platforms and are working with our internal and external specialist advisers, as well as all relevant authorities.

“Our website and app are operating as normal, with no current disruption to any aspects of our operations. Customer trust is incredibly important to us, and if the situation changes an update will be provided as appropriate.”

It later apologised directly to customers, saying: “We’re sorry that you may have received an unauthorised push notification from us earlier today. Please disregard the notification and do not click or engage with the external third-party link it contained.”

ASOS shares fall after data breach

ASOS estimates that it has around 17 million customers in 150 countries.

Shares in the publicly listed company reportedly fell nearly 14% after the breach made headlines.

The Guardian reported, "Shares closed down by 9.56% after Asos announced it had cybersecurity insurance with a large global provider, including business continuity insurance. 

“However, the company added: ‘It is too early to quantify any potential impact on trading’.”