M&S ends IT service desk contract with Tata Consultancy Services following cyber attack

Marks and Spencer has ended its IT service desk contract with Tata Consultancy Services, months after the Indian technology provider was investigated over a cyber attack that disrupted the British retailer’s operations earlier this year.

The London-based retailer confirmed that its decade-long contract with Tata Consultancy Services, a Mumbai-based global IT services firm under the Tata Sons conglomerate, concluded in July. The move follows an April cyber incident that forced M&S to suspend online orders and left some store shelves temporarily empty.

Tata Consultancy Services (TCS) conducted an internal investigation in June and cleared itself of being the source of the breach. M&S has not stated whether the contract termination was linked to the attack, emphasizing instead that the change resulted from a standard renewal process that began in January.

“Regarding the IT service desk contract specifically, as is usual process, we went to market to test for the most suitable product available, ran a thorough process and instructed a new provider this summer,” an M&S spokesperson said. “This change has no bearing on our wider TCS relationship.”

Despite the termination of the service desk deal, M&S said it continues to use TCS for several other technology and IT functions. The retailer described the Indian company as “a valued partner.”

In testimony to Members of Parliament in July, M&S Chair Archie Norman said hackers gained access through “sophisticated impersonation” techniques that involved a third-party vendor. The attack is expected to reduce the retailer’s operating profits by up to £300 million this year.

TCS did not respond to requests for comment on the contract’s conclusion. In a separate letter last month to Liam Byrne, chair of the UK House of Commons Business and Trade Select Committee, the company stated there were “no indicators of compromise within the TCS network” in relation to the M&S breach or similar incidents affecting other clients, including Jaguar Land Rover.

TCS, one of India’s largest IT outsourcing companies, said it provides services to 211 UK-based clients across multiple sectors, including finance, energy, water, and nuclear industries.