Cyberattack Disrupts Supermarkets in Nine European Countries
Supermarkets in at least nine European countries have been hit by a suspected cyberattack targeting refrigeration systems, forcing some retailers to discard food after temperatures in fridges and freezers rose overnight.
The affected countries are Belgium, Estonia, Finland, Ireland, Italy, Luxembourg, the Netherlands, Portugal and Sweden.
The incident has prompted concern from the European Union, with its Commissioner for Food and Agriculture, Christophe Hansen, warning of a possible threat to the bloc’s food supply chain.
Hansen said the EU was taking the incidents “very seriously”, describing them as a deliberate attempt to disrupt food supplies and undermine consumers’ confidence.
The latest disruption comes three weeks after a cyberattack affected grocery stores in France, forcing hundreds of outlets to dispose of spoiled stock. No group has claimed responsibility for either incident.
Belgium was among the hardest-hit countries, with dozens of stores across several supermarket chains reporting refrigeration failures. Federal prosecutors have opened an investigation into the incident.
Carrefour Belgium reported disruptions in about 15 of its 700 stores. Its spokesman, Mich Vergauwen, said the incident was a cyberattack.
Ikea also confirmed that its outlet in Mons experienced an attack that caused freezer temperatures to rise. Other affected retailers included Delhaize, Colruyt and Intermarché. Four Delhaize stores in Luxembourg also reported problems.
In Italy, at least four Coop supermarkets in Sicily and a business in Tuscany were affected, according to media reports and the national cybersecurity agency.
Giuseppe Spadaro, head of Radenza Group, which manages Coop-branded supermarkets, told ANSA that the attack occurred at about 4:00 a.m. and targeted the remote-control system for frozen food sections. He said the problem had since been resolved.
The Italian government was expected to hold a cybersecurity meeting with intelligence services on Tuesday.
In Ireland, Musgrave said 13 SuperValu stores were affected by what it described as a cyber incident, while a small number of corner shops in the Netherlands also experienced disruptions.
In Portugal, the Mosqueteiros group confirmed incidents at seven Intermarché stores, saying the attack appeared to have targeted an external service provider responsible for managing refrigeration systems.
Swedish retailer Coop said six of its approximately 800 stores were affected. The company confirmed that the incident had been resolved and that its refrigeration systems were working normally.
Coop spokesman Carlos Cancino said the affected stores were connected to a 4G mobile network rather than the updated 5G system, which he said made them more exposed to hackers. The company said it did not know who was behind the attack.
Swedish supermarket chain Ica also reported refrigeration problems in a limited number of stores but did not confirm a cyberattack. The affected outlets were connected to an external refrigeration control system supplied by Danish manufacturer Danfoss, which was also linked to the October 12 attack on French retailers.
In Finland, irregular temperatures were detected in some smaller grocery stores belonging to the Kesko group. The company said it was investigating the cause and had not ruled out interference through its network.
An information security specialist at Finland’s National Cyber Security Centre, Roni Kokkola, said the spread of similar incidents beyond France was not unexpected, given the increasing exploitation of vulnerabilities in connected systems.
In Estonia, at least one supermarket was reportedly attacked, with hackers raising the temperature in refrigeration units to 50 degrees Celsius, according to public broadcaster ERR.
The affected units were older models supplied by Danfoss, Jann Mutso, director of refrigeration systems company Kitman Coldtech, told ERR.
Meanwhile, Belgian refrigeration company Sabcobel said it had begun securing its installations following the October attack in France, although some systems had yet to be upgraded and were among those affected on Monday.
By Oluwafemi Shodipe.
