2025 UK Cyber-Attacks: What Funeral Directors can learn from the year’s biggest breaches

In 2025, cyber-attacks on UK organisations made big headlines, from supermarket chains and retailers to global manufacturers. These incidents make one thing clear: no business is immune to digital threats, even those with trusted reputations.

For funeral directors, who handle personal and sensitive information, the risk is very real.  Cyber risk now sits alongside other essential areas of Funeral Directors Insurance.

Let’s look at some of the major UK cyber-attacks this year and what they mean for your funeral business, and how Cyber Insurance can be your safety net.

The Co-operative Group: Grocery and Funeral Services Impacted

In April 2025, the Co-operative Group, a major UK retail and services organisation that also operates funeral homes nationwide, was targeted in a coordinated cyber-attack that affected its IT systems across multiple parts of the business.

As part of its response to the attack, Co-op took the precautionary step of shutting down elements of its IT platforms to protect systems and limit further damage.

What happened:

Cybercriminals gained unauthorised access to internal systems, disrupting both store operations and central support functions. As part of the incident, some customer and member data were compromised, prompting immediate containment and recovery measures.

The Impact:

• Temporary shutdown of some business services supporting stores and legal operations
• Empty store shelves and disruption to stock replenishment
• Issues with digital and card payments
• The incident resulted in at least £206 million in lost revenue
• Funeral homes were forced to revert to paper-based systems, limiting access to digital records and administrative tools

The incident demonstrated how cyber-attacks can affect frontline services as well as behind-the-scenes operations, even when organisations act quickly to contain the threat.

Why this matters to funeral directors:

This attack highlights that cyber-criminals do not target businesses based on sector alone. Instead, they exploit vulnerabilities within shared systems. For funeral directors, it shows how reliance on digital tools, such as case management software, payment systems and personal information, means a cyber incident can quickly disrupt day-to-day operations and service delivery.

It also underlines the potential financial impact of cyber incidents, from lost revenue and operational disruption to recovery costs and reputational damage.

Jaguar Land Rover Production Outage

In late August 2025, Jaguar Land Rover (JLR) suffered a cyber-attack that triggered a widespread IT shutdown and brought global manufacturing operations to a halt. The disruption affected several of its major UK plants, including Solihull, Halewood and Wolverhampton, creating significant knock-on effects across its supply chain.

What happened:

The attack, which began in late August, led to the shutdown of key IT systems as a containment measure. Ransomware encrypted critical systems, forcing JLR to suspend manufacturing while the incident was investigated and controlled.

The Impact:

• Production was paused across multiple UK sites, which meant suppliers experienced cancelled or delayed orders, with uncertainty around future supply
• Dealer systems were intermittently unavailable, affecting vehicle sales and servicing
• The disruption contributed to an estimated £1.9 billion in economic damage, with government support required to help stabilise the business

Why this matters to funeral directors:

While this incident was not aimed at the funeral sector, it may still affect funeral directors who rely on Jaguar Land Rover vehicles for:

• Transporting families or deceased loved ones
• Attending arrangements and services
• Day-to-day operational requirements

Extended disruption at the manufacturer level can delay vehicle availability, servicing, replacement parts and fleet renewals, creating unexpected operational challenges.

Cyber-attacks don’t need to target your business directly to have an impact. Disruption at the supplier or manufacturer level can quickly ripple through supply chains and affect essential assets your business relies on.

Marks & Spencer: Third-Party Risk and Prolonged Disruption

In April 2025, Marks & Spencer (M&S) was hit by a highly sophisticated cyber-attack that caused significant disruption to its UK operations, highlighting the growing risk posed by third-party suppliers and interconnected systems.

What happened:

Cybercriminals gained access to M&S systems through a combination of social engineering tactics, such as phishing emails, fraudulent login requests and impersonation,combined with vulnerabilities linked to a third-party IT supplier. Once inside the network, ransomware was used across internal systems, forcing the retailer to take parts of its digital platforms offline to contain the incident.

The Impact:

• Online orders were suspended for more than six weeks
• Logistics and stock management systems were severely disrupted
• Some stores experienced stock availability issues
• The incident cost around £300m in lost profits
• Significant internal resources were diverted to system recovery, investigation and customer communications

Despite having established IT controls in place, the attack demonstrated how a weakness outside the organisation’s direct control can still have widespread consequences.

Why this matters to funeral directors:

M&S is a well-resourced organisation with mature cybersecurity measures, yet it was still vulnerable due to reliance on external partners. This underlines the fact that cyber risk doesn’t stop at your own systems; it extends to everyone you connect with online.

If your business relies on third-party providers, such as:

• funeral management and booking software
• payment processors
• cloud-based document and record storage
• outsourced IT support

Then their security standards are just as important as your own. A cyber incident at a supplier can quickly disrupt your operations, compromise data and interrupt essential services, even if your own systems haven’t been directly attacked.

Harrods & Other Retailers

Alongside M&S and Co-op, stores like Harrods reported attempted attacks in early 2025, causing payment and online disruptions. Meanwhile, other UK brands such as H&M and Heathrow supply partners faced outages linked to cybersecurity issues.

Why Cyber Insurance is Important for Funeral Directors

Even with good cybersecurity in place, no business is completely protected from attack. Funeral directors handle highly sensitive personal and financial information, meaning a cyber incident can have serious operational, financial and reputational consequences.

Cyber Insurance can provide specialist support to help investigate an incident, recover systems and manage disruption, helping your business continue operating while protecting the trust of the families you support.

Understanding cyber risk is the first step to reducing it. To help funeral directors better understand today’s digital threats and how to protect against them, we have created a free, practical guide, “Cyber Insurance and Fraud Protection for Funeral Directors”.

The guide covers:

• The most common cyber threats facing funeral businesses
• How fraud and social engineering attacks typically occur
• Practical steps to reduce risk within your business
• How cyber insurance can support you before, during and after an incident

About SEIB Insurance Brokers

SEIB have been providing Funeral Director Insurance and Funeral Car Insurance for over 40 years. If you’d like further guidance or have questions about your insurance cover, call 01708 850000 or email info@seib.co.uk.