Cyber attackers hit supermarket giant behind Centra and SuperValu

By Ed Carty

The owner of Ireland's most popular supermarket has been hit by a cyber attack, with criminals trying to get shoppers' credit and debit card details.

Musgrave, which operates SuperValu, Centra and Daybreak stores, said malicious software had been used to try to steal the information of customers.

The malware also tried to take the expiry date of the cards but did not try to access cardholders' names, PINs or CCV numbers, the company said.

The cyber attack has been reported to gardai and the Data Protection Commissioner.

"While there is no evidence that any data has been stolen at this point, Musgrave is advising any concerned shoppers to review activity on their statements as a precautionary measure," the company said in a statement.

Musgrave also said it has "cyber breach response experts" and they have installed advanced technical fixes to combat the attempted breach.

The company said it would continue to actively manage and monitor the situation.

"The protection of information is an absolute priority for Musgrave, with a range of security solutions including threat-monitoring, anti-virus software, firewall and penetration testing deployed," Musgrave said.

"The company aims to ensure that security standards are maintained at the highest levels and apologises to its customers for this issue."

The details of customers in both the Republic and Northern Ireland were understood to have been targeted in the attack.

Musgrave operates the SuperValu and Centra brand networks on both sides of the border, while in the Republic it runs Daybreak stores and in Northern Ireland, Mace.