Fridges hacked, food spoiled: Cyberattack disrupts supermarkets across Europe

File photo: View of empty refrigerators at the frozen food aisle inside an Intermarche supermarket in Paris after a cyberattack

A suspected cyberattack targeting supermarket refrigeration systems has affected stores in Belgium, Estonia, Sweden and Ireland, forcing retailers to discard large quantities of spoiled food after the temperatures of fridges and freezers were remotely raised.The incident, reported overnight between Sunday and Monday, has hit several major supermarket chains, including Delhaize and Carrefour in Belgium, ICA and Coop in Sweden, and SuperValu in Ireland. Thirteen SuperValu stores were affected, while around 40 Delhaize outlets and 15 Carrefour stores in Belgium reported problems.In Belgium, some refrigeration units were reportedly set to as high as 70 degrees Celsius, causing an estimated €100,000 worth of food to be discarded at one Delhaize branch alone, according to local media reports. The total losses across affected stores could run into millions of euros, although a consolidated estimate has not been released.Carrefour Belgium spokesman Mich Vergauwen described the incident as a cyberattack, saying there was no other explanation, but added that its impact had been limited. The company said only 15 stores were affected and that it had taken immediate measures to keep its outlets operational.Delhaize also confirmed an IT incident involving refrigeration systems at several dozen stores. “We immediately took the necessary measures to keep our stores operational,” a company spokesperson told Euronews.

Fridges remotely reset, food thrown away

The impact extended to Sweden, where several ICA supermarkets reported that their refrigeration systems had been compromised. One store in Sjöbo, in the country’s south, said on social media that its fridges and freezers had been hacked overnight and their temperatures set to 50 degrees Celsius. The outlet temporarily closed before reopening.An ICA spokesperson said the incident had affected a small number of stores operating outside the chain’s central network, adding that the company was helping them manage the situation.Seven of Sweden’s 800 Coop stores were also affected. The retailer told the BBC that the situation was contained and under control.In Ireland, supermarket group Musgrave said 13 SuperValu stores had been hit by a suspected cyberattack. In Luxembourg, Delhaize suspended its ordering systems as a precaution.Belgium’s refrigeration installer Sabcobel said it had identified around 20 affected units among the hundreds it manages in the country. Its chief executive, Stephan Moelans, told Belga that the Belgian attack appeared to use the same mechanism as a cyberattack on French supermarkets in October.In Estonia, a hacker accessed a computer controlling refrigeration at one Selver supermarket and changed a freezer setting to 50 degrees Celsius above zero. The attack was detected within minutes and caused no damage to products, the retailer said.

Similar attack hit French supermarkets last month

A cyberattack on October 12 that affected hundreds of supermarkets in France belonging to the Intermarché and Coopérative U chains. That attack also targeted refrigeration systems, causing temperatures to rise and food to spoil.Moelans said refrigeration companies had been working to protect customers against the vulnerability since the French incident, but warned that a software update alone would not be enough. Physical modifications to the systems were also required, he said.“The simplest solution is to manage the fridges over a secure internet connection,” Moelans told Euronews, adding that many of Sabcobel’s customers had switched to this arrangement after the attack in France.The identity of those behind the latest attack remains unclear. National cybersecurity agencies in Belgium and Sweden said they were monitoring the incident.