Unidentified hackers have manipulated internet-connected refrigeration controls, pushing temperatures up to 50 degrees Celsius to melt components and spoil perishable goods across hundreds of stores. The disruptions hit major retailers, including Carrefour, Delhaize, and Swedish Coop, after initially causing millions of euros in damage throughout France. Similar suspicious cooling failures at military bases in Arizona and Rhode Island prompted the Pentagon to initiate joint investigations with French authorities. Analysts attribute the vulnerabilities to outdated software and easily compromised passwords on systems exposed to the open internet.
Key points
Hackers are actively targeting food supply infrastructure by manipulating internet-connec…: Hackers are actively targeting food supply infrastructure by manipulating internet-connected commercial refrigeration controls.
Cooling systems remain severely vulnerable due to outdated controllers, guessable passwor…: Cooling systems remain severely vulnerable due to outdated controllers, guessable passwords, and exposure to the public internet.
U.S. and French authorities are coordinating to identify the culprits behind the internat…: U.S. and French authorities are coordinating to identify the culprits behind the international wave of disruptions.
Sources checked by our analysis pipeline: 1
Cold stores in supermarkets across Europe have been targeted in a cyberattack with no clear culprit.
Supermarket refrigerators and freezers across Europe have been targeted by a cyberattack that raised the temperature of internet-linked units, destroying and damaging large quantities of food.
On Monday, fridges and freezers at more than 100 shops in several European countries ran hot. Cyberattacks on supermarkets began last month, when hundreds of French supermarkets were left with spoiled food and damage to units which had overheated, costing millions of euros.
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So far, it remains unclear why hackers targeted the supermarkets, but attacks have spread across the continent and even to the United States.
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British trade officials confirmed disruptions across several processing facilities, including one instance where refrigeration systems were forced up to 100C. The National Cyber Security Centre is currently assisting affected businesses to remediate the vulnerabilities, noting that grocery retailers have escaped direct damage and domestic food supplies remain unaffected.