Suspected cyberattack hit supermarket freezers across Europe in second wave

Cyberattacks targeting supermarket refrigerators have swept across Europe, prompting fridges to raise temperatures and spoil food in numerous stores. Giants Ahold Delhaize and Colruyt confirmed the hacks, while a Belgian subsidiary operating Delhaize systems revealed hackers altered settings to defrost refrigerators. This led to significant food waste, with stores forced to discard spoiled goods.

The attacks echo similar incidents in France last month, where hackers deliberately increased refrigerator temperatures, causing widespread food spoilage. The root cause of the breaches is traced to internet-connected refrigerators from Danish firm Danfoss, which had stopped issuing security updates. Security experts have warned since August that such units are vulnerable to remote hacks and outages.

The consequences of these attacks extend beyond individual stores, impacting the broader food supply chain due to weak cybersecurity practices. Last year, a cyberattack on food distributor UNFI caused shortages and empty shelves in U.S. grocery stores and supermarkets. The U.S. Department of Defense is investigating whether military bases' freezer units were targeted by Iranian hackers, and Iranian hackers were also implicated in U.S. water provider cyberattacks earlier this year.