A cyber attack targeting freezer units has hit numerous European supermarkets, following similar incidents in France and at several U.S. military bases.
The hack hit over 115 stores in at least 10 European countries, forcing them to pull products from shelves, resulting in food losses. The incident comes barely two weeks after European authorities told citizens to stock up food and water for at least 72 hours.
The incident highlights the growing risks food supply chains, part of critical infrastructure, continue to face. While no AI link has been established so far, some have warned of the growing risk that artificial intelligence poses to cybersecurity.
Cyber attack hits numerous European supermarkets
Several European supermarkets have been hit by a potentially coordinated cyber attack targeting freezers in Belgium, Estonia, Finland, Germany, Ireland, Italy, Luxembourg, the Netherlands, Portugal, and Sweden.
ICA Sweden confirmed the cyber attack affected at least four locations, while Coop Sweden reported that at least seven of its stores were impacted.
Other impacted European supermarkets include Ahold Delhaize Belgium and Luxembourg, affecting around 40 locations. In Belgium, affected supermarkets include Carrefour Belgium (15 locations), Spar Colruyt (5 locations), and Intermarché (15 locations). Belgian authorities have since launched an investigation.
The cyber attack also affected SuperValu Ireland (13 locations) and Selver Estonia (1 location). In the Netherlands, at least 15 butcher stores were affected.
Similarly, other smaller, independently operated European supermarkets were likely affected, suggesting a widespread impact.
In some locations, temperatures inside the cold storage units reportedly rose to as high as 122 degrees Fahrenheit (50 degrees Celsius), causing food spoilage. In an earlier cyber attack targeting French supermarkets, cold storage units not only overheated but also caused smoke and fires.
So far, losses from the cyber attack on European supermarkets are estimated to reach tens of millions of Euros. According to European Commissioner for Agriculture Christophe Hansen, the recurring cyber attacks on food supply chains are deeply concerning and must be taken seriously. He also warned of future cyber attacks on European food supply chains.
“They are a deliberate attempt to disrupt our food supply chain and undermine consumers’ confidence in it – a warning that we must take seriously,” he added.
Meanwhile, some affected cold food storage units reportedly used the obsolete Danish firm Danfoss’s temperature control technology, which was targeted in the coordinated attack on French supermarkets.
Additionally, the affected cold storage units are believed to use internet-connected Refrigeration Monitoring and Control Systems (RMCS) that may contain vulnerabilities or lack the security controls commonly found in traditional IT systems.
According to Italy’s Prime Minister’s office, some of the affected supermarkets were “mostly still equipped with obsolete security systems, with interfaces directly exposed to the internet and inadequate authentication mechanisms.”
“If these are cyber-attacks, as suspected, the common thread looks like remotely reachable controllers, not a fridge fault,” said Waseem Ahmed, Head of Engineering, Secure.com. “French authorities named specific refrigeration controllers, researchers found thousands reachable from the internet, and one expert said many ran default passwords. Some older models no longer get security updates. The latest wave is still being confirmed, so I wouldn’t point at one vendor or one flaw today.”
According to Damon Small, a board member at Xcape, industrial control systems should implement security measures similar to those found in traditional IT environments.
“Commercial refrigeration systems must be protected with the same diligence as any other operational technology (OT),” said Small. “Remote access, where necessary, should be restricted to secure connections such as VPNs and protected by strong identification and authentication mechanisms.”
Hybrid warfare against European countries
So far, no hacking group has claimed responsibility for the cyber attacks on European supermarkets, but some suspect Russia’s involvement, which the country has denied.
Nevertheless, Western intelligence agencies believe that Russia is waging a hybrid war in retaliation for supporting Ukraine in the ongoing war, which is currently entering its fifth year. Moscow is suspected of conducting a hybrid campaign involving sabotage, arson, and disinformation operations targeting Western countries.
Similarly, hacktivist groups backed by hostile intelligence agencies or lone-wolf attackers could have carried out the incident, using AI-powered tools to discover and exploit security vulnerabilities in cold storage units.
Meanwhile, the United States is also investigating the cyber attack targeting freezers on numerous military bases and is working with its French counterparts to determine whether the incidents were related.
Recently, Russia was accused of hacking Ukraine’s emergency alert systems to send fabricated nuclear threats, prompting Kyiv to retaliate with a similar cyber attack.
