The Cyber Bulletin: spider caught by police

On 10th July 25, the National Crime Agency (NCA) arrested four individuals on charges relating to the cyber attacks which had targeted major retailers including M&S, Co-Op and Harrods. They are thought to be part of a larger group called Scattered Spider.

The National Crime Agency reported that it had arrested four individuals in relation to a series of cyber attacks which targeted the UK retail sector in April and May this year. Two 19-year-old males, one 17-year-old male, and a 20-year-old female were arrested in the homes for offences including participation in organised crime, blackmail, money laundering and offences against the Computer Misuse Act. Police are also said to have seized electronic devices in order to examine them for evidence relating to the offences or details of other co-conspirators.

The series of attacks was attributed to the threat group Scattered Spider. The group targeted retailers in the UK before moving on to US retailers, US Financial Institutions including Insurance companies and Airlines based in North America.

The attacks on UK retailers caused significant financial and reputational harm with M&S estimated to have lost £300 million in profits.

Scattered Spider are believed to be a larger collective of English-speaking threat actors who associate via Discord, Telegram and online forums. As such, these arrests are unlikely to halt any further attacks by the group over the medium to long term, although the NCA assess it is realistically possible it could result in disruption to their operations over the short term.

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Reporting

Report all Fraud and Cybercrime to Action Fraud by calling 0300 123 2040 or online. Forward suspicious emails to report@phishing.gov.uk. Report SMS scams by forwarding the original message to 7726 (spells SPAM on the keypad).

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