French officials blame Iran for refrigerator hacks, vow retaliation

French officials have accused Iran’s Revolutionary Guards of orchestrating a series of cyberattacks that crippled commercial refrigerators across France. The disruption, which occurred in early October, affected hundreds of supermarkets and was one of the most severe cyberattacks witnessed during the ongoing conflict between Iran and the West. These attacks were among the disruptive incidents that have marred the conflict, which includes alleged digital disruptions against US water treatment plants and US military bases.

The French Foreign Minister, Jean-Noel Barrot, summoned the Iranian ambassador to France’s Foreign Ministry in response to the attacks, threatening further EU sanctions against Iran. The hacking incident, which overrode temperature controls on commercial fridges, has raised concerns among cybersecurity experts who previously told Reuters that the attack was relatively simple to carry out. Many of the affected refrigerators were either obsolete or running outdated firmware, making them vulnerable to hacking.

The consequences of the hack were severe, with some fridges overheating to the point of catching fire. The total costs of the attack could reach tens of millions of euros nationwide. The attacks on French supermarkets were followed by a second wave of hacking incidents in Europe, affecting over 100 establishments, including French blood banks. This prompted employees to move some blood samples to different cold storage units to prevent spoilage.

The seemingly straightforward nature of the refrigerator hacks and their repetition across multiple countries have sparked speculation about the responsible party. The timing of the attacks has led to comparisons with ongoing concerns over Russia’s suspected sabotage campaign in Europe, the US-Iran conflict, and the global rise of AI-powered cyberattacks.

The Pentagon is treating the sabotage of US military refrigerators in August as a suspected cyberattack and is working with French officials to determine the extent of the incident.

While Reuters could not independently establish a link between the US and French incidents, a person familiar with the matter confirmed that the Pentagon considers Iran a suspect in the August commissary hacks. However, the investigation into the matter is still ongoing. The French Foreign Ministry has not confirmed the allegations against Iran, maintaining that such accusations are simply the latest in a series of cyberattacks in the ongoing geopolitical conflict.