Ahold Delhaize has taken systems offline and left major U.S. grocery websites dark after a network security issue, with no timeline for when service will return.
The grocery giant said Monday it is dealing with a security issue inside its network and moved some systems offline as a protective step. By Monday morning, shoppers trying to reach the company’s big American banners found the sites down.
Grocery Dive reported that every Ahold Delhaize USA banner site was out: Hannaford, Stop & Shop, Giant Food, Food Lion, and The Giant Company. In the Netherlands, the company’s home base, sites for Albert Heijn, Etos, and Gall & Gall were down as well.
Ahold Delhaize said it took the systems offline as “precautionary measures” and “to help protect them.” The company also said all stores remain open. Its Monday press release did not say whether any in-store operations were hit.
Ahold Delhaize USA told Grocery Dive it had nothing to add beyond that Monday release. It also said it has no timeline for when the systems will come back online.
That leaves customers and employees without a clear picture of what failed, what is still at risk, or when digital service returns. The company described a “security issue” and a “cybersecurity incident,” but did not spell out the cause, the scope, or whether data was touched.
Shoppers can still walk into stores. Online ordering, account tools, and other web services tied to those banners are another matter while the sites stay dark.
This is not the first time Ahold Delhaize has had to yank systems offline over cybersecurity trouble. In late 2024, the company faced an incident that potentially exposed sensitive information belonging to more than 2 million people.
That earlier episode forced systems offline, caused banner website outages, and temporarily suspended Hannaford’s e-commerce services. Ahold Delhaize said the breach might have compromised sensitive information from current and former employees, plus their dependents and beneficiaries. The company said customer payment and pharmacy systems were likely not involved.
Monday’s outage again knocked banner websites offline across the United States and at key Dutch banners. Again, the public is left with limited detail and no restoration date.
Ahold Delhaize’s five U.S. banners serve millions of everyday shoppers. When those sites go dark together, the disruption is national in reach even if the aisles stay open.
The company has confirmed the security issue, the decision to take systems offline, and the open-store status. It has not confirmed the attack type, any data impact in the current incident, or which store-level tools beyond the websites may be affected. It has not said when normal digital service will resume.
For a retailer that already told the public about a late-2024 incident touching more than 2 million people’s information, the thin update is a problem of its own. People who bag groceries, run households, and work for these chains deserve plain facts, not a vague security notice and a shrug on timing.
When a grocery giant’s websites go dark twice in roughly two years, “precautionary” is not the same as accountability.