A cyberattack affecting supermarket cooling systems has been reported in Belgium, Sweden, Ireland, Luxembourg, Estonia, Finland and the Netherlands. Refrigerators and freezers in some stores reportedly warmed up, leading to the spoilage of a large number of products.
In Belgium, some branches of Delhaize, Carrefour and Spar, as well as an Ikea store in Mons, were affected. Ikea said the impact on its store was limited. Delhaize reported an “IT incident” at around 40 branches, while Carrefour said 15 of its stores and Spar five of its stores were affected. The incident in Belgium was described as significantly smaller than a similar attack in France in the middle of last month, which affected about 150 stores.
Refrigeration technology company Sabcobel said the systems had been switched remotely into defrost mode. Stephan Moelans, chairman of the company’s board, told Belga: “To get the situation under control, we started mobilising technicians from 01.00 this night.” Belgium’s public prosecutor’s office is reported to be investigating the incident.
In Sweden, ICA said it was aware of an incident overnight affecting cooling and freezing systems at a limited number of branches, but declined to say how many stores were involved. ICA Kvantum in the town of Sjöbo said in a Facebook post that temperatures in its refrigerators and freezers had risen to as much as 50 degrees and that a hacker attack was behind the problems. ICA Group did not confirm that information. Seven supermarkets belonging to the Coop chain also reported problems with their cooling systems.
In Ireland, 13 supermarkets were reported to have been affected by the cyberattack. Chilled and frozen food was removed from sale at the affected branches as a precaution. Danfoss said at least 17 small stores in the Netherlands were also targeted. In Estonia, a supermarket and the associated refrigeration technology company confirmed a case in which attackers gained access to the control computer of an older cooling system, not yet updated, using Danfoss software. Malfunctions were also reported at a small number of small stores in Finland.
Danfoss said it was in close contact with customers and was supporting them in managing the situation. A company spokesperson said: “We can confirm that the incidents reported in many European countries also concern our products.” No further verified information was provided on the identity of the attackers or the full technical scope of the incidents.
