Cyberattacks Target Supermarket Refrigeration Systems Across Europe
Supermarkets in Sweden, Belgium, Luxembourg and Estonia reported refrigeration failures caused by apparent cyberattacks, with some stores forced to discard spoiled food after temperatures were remotely raised.
Supermarket chains in several European countries reported disruptions to their refrigeration and freezing systems on Monday after apparent cyberattacks, forcing some stores to throw away spoiled food. The incidents affected outlets in Sweden, Belgium, Luxembourg and Estonia, according to reports from local media and company spokespeople.
In Sweden, ICA Group spokesperson Gustaf Nilsson told the TT news agency that a limited number of stores were affected overnight by an incident impacting refrigeration and freezing equipment. One ICA Kvantum branch in Sjöbo, in the south of the country, said on Facebook that its fridges and freezers had been targeted and set to 50 degrees Celsius (122 degrees Fahrenheit), and that staff were working to dispose of the affected products. The Coop chain separately reported problems at six stores in central Sweden.
The disruptions follow a similar case last month in France, where attackers remotely took control of refrigeration systems at hundreds of supermarkets and independent stores and raised temperatures. Monday's incidents suggest a continuation of attacks targeting connected cooling equipment used by retailers.
In Belgium, the Delhaize chain said an IT incident had affected refrigeration in several dozen stores, mostly in Belgium along with a few in neighbouring Luxembourg. Spokesperson Sarah De Meester said the range of fresh and frozen products was temporarily somewhat limited in the affected outlets, while distribution centres were operating normally and deliveries had not been disrupted. Carrefour Belgium said a cyberattack targeting refrigeration installations had an extremely limited impact, affecting 15 of its more than 700 stores.
In Estonia, public broadcaster ERR reported that a company making the affected technology said one of its clients had been hit by an attack in which intruders accessed a computer controlling refrigeration and raised the temperature to 50 degrees Celsius. Jann Mutso, chief executive of Kitman Coldtech, declined to identify the affected store but said the attack was responded to within minutes and caused no significant damage. The Selver chain confirmed that one of its outlets was affected.
The incidents highlight the exposure of connected building and cooling systems to remote intrusion, and the operational and food-safety risks that follow when such equipment is compromised. Retailers across the region have not indicated who might be responsible, and investigations into the individual cases are ongoing.
