Major North American grocery wholesaler United Natural Foods, Inc., which serves as the primary distributor for Whole Foods and all U.S. Military commissaries, has confirmed experiencing a suspected ransomware attack on Thursday, which has led to the shutdown of certain systems, according to Cybernews.Investigation into the incident, which has temporarily affected customer order fulfillment and distribution efforts, is still underway, said UNFI in a breach notification filing with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission, which noted that workarounds have already been adopted to ensure the continuation of certain operations. UNFI’s disclosure — which comes after the recent Scattered Spider ransomware attacks against UK retailers Marks & Spencer, Harrods, and The Co-op — was regarded by cybersecurity experts to be indicative of the mounting cybersecurity threats faced by the retail sector. “When the largest publicly traded wholesale distributor in the US, supplying over 30,000 locations across North America, is forced to shut down various systems, it doesn’t just slow distribution; it sends shockwaves through the supply chain,” said Swimlane Lead Security Automation Architect Nick Tausek.
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