Italy holds emergency talks as supermarket fridge attacks spread across Europe

Italy’s government convened emergency talks with intelligence chiefs on Tuesday following a series of cyberattacks on supermarket freezing systems across 11 European countries. The attacks, which have occurred over recent days, have forced at least 20 stores in various countries to discard food due to rising temperatures in their fridges and freezers. The UK has also been impacted by the incidents.

No group has claimed responsibility for the attacks, leaving the motive unknown. The Italian government reported that the impact so far has been "highly limited," affecting only outlets with outdated security systems. Around 20 stores nationwide have reportedly been targeted.

Giuseppe Spadaro, director of a Coop supermarket chain in Sicily, explained that four of the 300 stores under his management were affected, forcing them to throw away their inventory. "We had to throw away everything. The shelves are empty," he told the Corriere della Sera newspaper.

EU spokesperson Thomas Regnier stated that EU agencies are collaborating with national authorities to devise a collective response to the cyber incidents. "These are not isolated incidents, and of course, we have to be collectively resilient and prepared for such cyber incidents," he emphasized.

EU Food and Agriculture Commissioner Christophe Hansen described the attacks as a "deliberate attempt to disrupt our food supply chain." However, Romania's cybersecurity chief, Dan Cimpean, of the National Cyber Security Directorate, downplayed the attacks, stating that they appeared to be "semi-amateurish" and that there was no evidence to suggest state involvement.

The UK's National Cyber Security Centre chief, Richard Horne, told the BBC that the issue affected the entire food supply chain, with a few instances of "vulnerable technology being exploited." In Germany, four stores were impacted, and in Sweden, Coop's seven affected shops quickly returned to normal after addressing the issue.

Belgium was among the hardest-hit countries, leading federal prosecutors to open an investigation. Last month, French supermarkets also fell victim to a similar cyberattack, with hundreds of stores affected.

Supermarket refrigeration systems are often connected to the internet to enable contractors to remotely monitor and repair them. A recent study by security firm Forescout found that nearly 13,000 refrigeration control services were openly accessible online in 99 countries, raising concerns about potential vulnerabilities to cyberattacks.