What: Asos shares fell more than 10% after customers received app notifications claiming the retailer had been hacked and its Snowflake instance compromised, though no data access has been confirmed.

Why it is important: A hacker reaching customers through a retailer's own app makes follow-up phishing far more convincing, and it shows that a platform compromise can become a direct customer-trust problem before any data loss is confirmed.

Shares in Asos fell more than 10% on Tuesday, dropping as much as 11% in morning trading, after customers reported receiving app notifications saying the retailer had been hacked. Screen grabs posted by users on social media showed a message addressed to Asos's data protection officer and IT team, claiming the attackers had compromised its Snowflake instance and threatening to leak unspecified material unless the company engaged with them. Snowflake is a widely used cloud-based data platform.

There is no immediate confirmation that customer data was accessed, but customers were warned to be alert for follow-up attacks. Asos declined to comment, though a person familiar with the matter said it was investigating. Snowflake did not immediately respond, and its shares fell 2% in pre-market trading. A 2024 breach involving Snowflake customers was linked to attacks on AT&T, Ticketmaster and Santander.

NordVPN's chief technology officer, Marijus Briedis, said the app-notification delivery suggests unauthorised access to at least part of Asos's systems, and warned customers to watch for phishing emails or texts about passwords or payments. The apparent incident follows attacks on Jaguar Land Rover and the Co-op Group.

IADS Notes: Earlier attacks on UK retailers show how quickly a cyber incident can become a financial and leadership issue. M&S absorbed a £136mn profit hit after an incident traced to a third-party supplier forced a seven-week suspension of online sales (Financial Times, November 2025), and Co-op's chief executive is stepping down as the costs of its own attack mount (Financial Times, March 2026). Analysis of why the sector is so exposed points to the combination of rich customer data and interconnected omnichannel and third-party systems, which attackers exploit through weaker providers (Retail Insight Network, July 2026). The balance-sheet consequences of a confirmed breach are visible at Coupang, where a penalty of roughly $410 million tied to a breach affecting more than 33 million customers pushed the group to a quarterly loss (Inside Retail, August 2026). The customer-facing side of such incidents appeared at De Bijenkorf, which warned shoppers of heightened phishing risk after a cyberattack on its logistics partner CEVA exposed customer data (nu.nl, September 2026).

Asos shares fall over 10% after app notifications claim hack