How do hackers make supermarket food spoil? Inside Europe’s fridge cyberattacks

Cyberattacks targeting supermarket refrigeration systems across Europe have exposed the risks of connecting industrial equipment to the internet. Following a previous incident in France, several shops in Belgium, Estonia, Finland, Ireland, Luxembourg, the Netherlands, and Sweden experienced significant temperature increases, leading to the disposal of spoiled food.

Industrial systems like refrigerators, once isolated, are now frequently linked to the internet for remote monitoring and management, according to cybersecurity experts. This connectivity can also provide a pathway for hackers to interfere with physical systems via digital networks.

In France, the attack specifically targeted the fridge regulation system manufactured by Danish company Danfoss, which is commonly utilized by numerous retailers. Cybersecurity engineer Kevin Tellier explained that most of these systems are normally isolated and inaccessible from the internet, requiring a password to adjust the temperature. However, due to a lack of adequate safeguards, many of these systems were exposed to "anyone with some basic knowledge," leading to their compromise.

Olivier Daloy, a cybersecurity expert at Zscaler, emphasized that industrial infrastructure is particularly vulnerable because it bridges IT systems with outdated physical equipment. By infiltrating these IT systems, hackers could manipulate the equipment and cause real-world disruptions. He cited the Stuxnet virus from 2010 as a past example, which caused failures in Iran's centrifuges used for uranium enrichment.

Vincent Strubel, head of France's National Cybersecurity Agency, attributed the October French attack to "basic security shortcomings," particularly the fridges' direct exposure to the internet without robust security measures and weak passwords. Determining the perpetrators of this attack remains "extremely complicated," according to cybersecurity experts Antoine Hautin and Kevin Tellier. The complexity of the attack suggests that the hackers may not have significant resources at their disposal.

The French national security document highlighted cyberattacks as a priority threat, noting that such incidents could have far-reaching consequences for food supply chains. These events underline the vulnerability of supply chains to cyberattacks, emphasizing the urgent need for improved cybersecurity measures.