Hackers attack supermarket fridges in Belgium, Sweden and Luxembourg

On Monday, refrigerators in multiple supermarkets across Belgium, Sweden, and Luxembourg experienced technical issues, according to local news reports. The incidents appear to be reminiscent of recent cyberattacks that targeted French supermarkets in mid-October. Store managers in Belgium reported that refrigerator temperatures suddenly rose to up to 50 degrees Celsius, mirroring the French incidents where attackers remotely manipulated defrosting mechanisms to cause overheating.

Belgian and Swedish media reported sudden spikes in refrigerator temperatures, leading to the disposal of perishable food items. Delhaize, a supermarket chain, alerted its store managers about refrigerator problems and attributed the issue to a cyberattack similar to those experienced in France. Dutch media also reported that Delhaize stores in Luxembourg were affected.

Delhaize confirmed an "IT incident affecting the refrigeration systems in a number of Delhaize stores" and stated they are actively addressing the issue. Colruyt, which operates Spar stores in Belgium, stated that fridges in around five Spar stores were impacted, and they are working to resolve the situation, confirming no Colruyt stores have been affected.

Fifteen Belgian Carrefour stores were reportedly impacted as well. The Centre for Cybersecurity Belgium is closely monitoring the incident. Swedish supermarket chain ICA confirmed an "incident overnight affecting a small number of ICA stores operating outside ICA's central network," impacting fridges and freezers. Additionally, Coop stores in Sweden were also affected.

French supermarkets faced similar attacks in mid-October when attackers manipulated refrigerators from Danfoss, a Danish manufacturer, leading to overheating. Danfoss has not commented on the current situation.