M&S expects cyber-attack to last into July and cost £300m in lost profits

Retailer says website likely to reopen within weeks but disruption to some services could last longer

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Marks & Spencer has said it will take an estimated £300m hit to profits this year from a damaging cyber-attack that it expects to disrupt its online business into July.

Its chief executive, Stuart Machin, confirmed that “threat actors” had gained access to the retailer’s systems using “social engineering” techniques – such as posing as a staff member to fool a help desk – via one of M&S’s contractors and the hack was not down to a weakness in its IT systems.