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If hackers can take control of a supermarket freezer, how vulnerable is other tech?
Confirmed
In Short: Hackers set temperatures as high as 122 degrees Fahrenheit in freezers across seven European countries, spoiling food.
Hackers set temperatures as high as 122 degrees Fahrenheit in freezers across seven European countries, spoiling food overnight. The EU condemned the attack, calling it a deliberate attempt to disrupt the food supply chain and undermine consumer confidence.
The attack affected supermarket groups Ahold Delhaize and Colruyt in Belgium and Luxembourg, as well as Swedish grocers ICA and Coop. In Sweden, ICA Group spokesperson Gustaf Nilsson said a limited number of stores were affected, with temperatures in refrigeration and freezing systems set to 50 degrees Celsius (122 degrees Fahrenheit).
In Ireland, refrigeration systems in 13 SuperValu stores were affected by the cyberattack, and in Belgium, Delhaize said an “IT incident” had affected refrigeration systems in several dozen stores. The Carrefour supermarket chain in Belgium reported that the attack had an extremely limited impact, affecting 15 of its more than 700 stores.
Rickard Nilsson, head of an Ica shop in Sjöbo, southern Sweden, said, “We can’t adjust the temperatures, we can’t change them. Hot air is blowing into the freezers. Everything is ruined.” The attack raised temperatures in refrigerator and freezer units at dozens of stores, hitting supermarket groups across Europe.
In response to the attack, supermarkets across several European countries are rushing to remove chilled products. ICA is currently supporting the affected stores in managing the situation. The incident comes just weeks after a similar cyberattack struck France on October 12, when hundreds of supermarkets experienced disruptions.
What's confirmed
- In Sweden, ICA Group supermarket chain spokesperson Gustaf Nilsson told news agency TT that “a limited number” of stores were affected overnight by an incident that affected refrigeration and freezing systems.
- The Carrefour supermarket chain in Belgium said a “cyberattack targeting refrigeration installations only had an extremely limited impact,” affecting 15 of its more than 700 stores.
- An ICA Kvantum store in Sjöbo, southern Sweden, said its fridges and freezers had been hacked and set to 50 degrees Celsius (122 degrees Fahrenheit).
- The Coop chain said that six of its stores in central Sweden had problems with their fridges and freezers, TT reported, though it didn’t immediately have details.
What's still developing
- According to a separate report by Nextgov/FCW, two people familiar with the matter said US officials suspect Iran-linked hackers could be behind the incidents.
- Danfoss has previously said that hackers targeted or accessed supermarkets in Russia and Israel in 2022 using obsolete versions of its refrigeration controllers.
- Europe is facing a fresh wave of supermarket cyberattacks, with Sweden, Belgium, Luxembourg and Estonia reporting problems with their refrigerators and freezers.
- Sweden’s National Cybersecurity Centre confirmed on Monday that it was responding to multiple incidents affecting supermarket cooling systems.
- Instacart operates a grocery-focused marketplace that connects consumers with supermarkets and other retailers, while DoorDash has been expanding aggressively into grocery, convenience, retail, and other local commerce categories.