London Drugs closes stores until further notice due to cyberattack

Retail and pharmacy chain London Medicine says it was the “sufferer of a cybersecurity incident” Sunday and has shuttered its shops throughout Western Canada till additional discover.

The retailer, which is headquartered in B.C., says the closure is out of “an abundance of warning” and that it instantly took measures to counter the assault as soon as it was found.

“Right now, we’ve got no cause to consider that buyer or worker knowledge has been impacted,” the corporate mentioned in a assertion emailed to CBC Information round 5:30 p.m. PT on Sunday.

Whereas an preliminary social media submit said that clients had been inspired to name their pharmacists if that they had pressing wants, an announcement on Monday afternoon mentioned the retailer had de-activated their cellphone traces as they continued to research the cyberattack.

“Pharmacy employees are on-site in any respect London Medicine places to help clients with pressing pharmacy wants,” the Monday assertion learn.

London Medicine initially confirmed the closure of its shops in a submit on X, previously often known as Twitter. In a submit on Fb, the corporate mentioned the closure wouldn’t be everlasting.

In a earlier assertion to CBC Information Sunday afternoon, the retailer had mentioned the closures had been attributable to an “operational challenge.”

CBC Information spoke to employees at a location in Kamloops, B.C. earlier within the day, who mentioned they had been experiencing a “pc challenge,” which meant the shop couldn’t help clients.

London Medicine mentioned it has retained third-party specialists to assist comprise, repair and forensically examine the incident.

“We need to guarantee you that this incident is of the utmost precedence for us,” the corporate mentioned in its assertion, thanking clients for his or her endurance and promising to replace them because it progressed in resolving the difficulty.

The retailer operates practically 80 shops throughout B.C., Alberta, Saskatchewan and Manitoba, with greater than 50 of them in B.C.

WATCH | London Medicine shops shutter in B.C.: 

London Medicine closes shops till additional discover as a consequence of cyberattack

For the second consecutive day, London Medicine clients have been greeted with locked doorways and indicators saying the shops are closed as a consequence of an “operations challenge.” The retail and pharmacy chain later confirmed it was a sufferer of a cybersecurity incident. As CBC’s Jon Hernandez experiences, the B.C.-based firm says buyer and worker knowledge seem like secure — and the closures are precautionary.