Who is hacking Europe’s supermarket fridges and freezers, and why?

In a recent cyberattack, supermarket refrigeration systems across Europe were targeted, causing temperatures in freezers and refrigerators to rise and forcing stores to discard spoiled food. The attacks affected several supermarket chains in Sweden, Belgium, and Luxembourg on November 2nd. The grocery retailers ICA and Coop in Sweden, as well as Ahold Delhaize and Colruyt in Belgium and Luxembourg, were among those hit.

Even the furniture retailer IKEA reportedly had at least one of its stores affected. A sales manager at an ICA franchise store in Stockholm stated that the incident occurred at around 2am local time, but was not discovered until hours later. By then, the store's freezers had reached temperatures of 50°C, rendering its frozen goods completely ruined.

The impact of the attacks was felt beyond Sweden, with several stores in Belgium, Ireland, and Sweden also affected. No group has claimed responsibility for the attacks, but cybersecurity experts suggest that these incidents could be acts of sabotage rather than attempts at extortion or political motivations. The timing of the attacks coincides with governments across Europe issuing guidelines encouraging households to stockpile essential supplies for emergencies.

Meanwhile, cyberattacks have also been causing significant disruptions in other areas, such as public LED billboards in Kluang, Johor, and cryptocurrency exchange Binance.