London Drugs shuts all stores after cybersecurity incident

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Pharmacy chain London Drugs Ltd. shut dozens of stores in western Canada on Sunday following a cyber incident.

The chain discovered it was the victim of a cybersecurity incident on Sunday, a representative said by email, and shut all of its stores “out of an abundance of caution.” The stores will remain closed until further notice, according to the email.

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The B.C.-based company has 80 stores employing more than 8,000 people from Manitoba to Vancouver Island.

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London Drugs has no reason to believe that customer or employee data has been impacted, the spokeswoman said. The company has taken “countermeasures” including hiring cybersecurity experts to help with containment, remediation and investigation, she added.

An employee outside a store in the Kerrisdale neighbourhood of Vancouver told arriving customers that all the computers were down at that location, though some appeared to be allowed in to pick up prescriptions.

The online store at londondrugs.com appeared to be fully operational as of Sunday afternoon.

The company said pharmacists were available for customers with urgent needs, and local stores could be contacted by phone.

Staff at a store in Kamloops, B.C. told CBC News that they were experiencing a “computer issue,” which meant the store could not assist customers.

The Richmond, British Columbia-based chain was founded in 1945 and bought by Vancouver entrepreneur Tong Louie of HY Louie Co. Ltd., in 1976, according to its website. Louie’s son Brandt Louie now steers the family business, one of the region’s largest retailers.

Reporting by Bloomberg and Postmedia

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