Doughnut chain Krispy Kreme says it has been hit by a cyberattack which has disrupted its on-line programs.
Some clients within the US have been unable to make on-line orders because of the hack, which occurred in late November however has solely simply been disclosed.
Krispy Kreme revealed the assault in a regulatory submitting with the US Securities and Exchanges Fee (SEC) on Wednesday.
It mentioned the incident was “moderately possible” to “have a cloth influence” on the agency’s enterprise operations, however clarified that brick-and-mortar outlets stay open.
“We’re experiencing sure operational disruptions on account of a cybersecurity incident, together with with on-line ordering in components of america,” reads a message on the Krispy Kreme web site.
“We all know that is an inconvenience and are working diligently to resolve the problem.”
The agency informed the BBC in an announcement it “instantly” took steps to research and comprise the incident, and has introduced in cybersecurity consultants.
“We, together with them, proceed to work diligently to reply to and mitigate the influence from the incident, together with the restoration of on-line ordering,” it mentioned.
No teams have publicly taken accountability for the hack.
Krispy Kreme is a big chain within the US, which has greater than 1,400 outlets worldwide.
Within the UK it’s smaller, however its 120 areas make it the biggest speciality doughnut retailer within the nation.
Krispy Kreme said in its SEC submitting that it has cybersecurity insurance coverage, which it expects “to offset a portion of the prices”.
It mentioned it anticipated these prices to come up from a lack of digital gross sales, charges for the consultants it has employed, and the restoration of impacted programs.
Cyber-attacks have precipitated critical disruption this 12 months, plaguing key infrastructure together with hospitals and transport systems.
“The proliferation of cyberattacks in 2024 exhibits that hackers are keen to focus on something and the whole lot,” mentioned Spencer Starkey, from cyber-security agency SonicWall.
“It is vital each single enterprise has a strong roadmap in place to deploy if and when an assault occurs,” he added.
Social media is taking this incident considerably much less severely, nevertheless.
“Anybody messing with Krispy Kreme must be jailed for all times,” joked one person on X.
“Cybercriminals, you’ve got gone too far this time,” posted one other.