Shares in Asos dropped 10 per cent after hackers hijacked the retailer’s mobile notification network to deliver an extortion demand directly to shoppers’ phones.

Global markets including Australia, Ireland, France and Sweden received the alert on Tuesday. Shares tumbled as low as 432 pence in London trade.

The rogue push message hit customer devices around 10:00 BST. Addressed directly to the retailer’s data protection officer and technology teams, the notification read: “we have fully compromised the Snowflake instance. Engage with us, or we will leak it.” It linked users to a Telegram channel run by a group calling itself Xuanye Group. In follow-up messages, the hackers claimed customer records were safe on their server and would not be touched for a set period. They also claimed payment data was untouched.

Asos cut access to its third-party customer messaging systems once the broadcast went out. Core systems, the shopping app and regional websites continue to trade normally, management said. External forensic specialists are now investigating alongside regulators to determine the scope of the breach.

Basic personal records including names and contact details were exposed, the group confirmed. Payment-card details and passwords remained secure. Cloud storage provider Snowflake said its internal review found no compromise of its underlying platform.

Hijacking a retailer’s push alert pipeline creates an operational headache for digital merchants across Asia-Pacific and Western markets. Intruders usually negotiate data ransoms behind closed doors. By weaponizing an app installed on over 10 million mobile devices, attackers force the victim into a public crisis before forensic teams can map the intrusion.

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