Supermarket Fridges and Freezers Across Europe Hit by Apparent Cyberattacks

Supermarkets in several European countries reported sharp rises in fridge and freezer temperatures on Monday, in incidents that appear to be cyberattacks and forced some stores to throw away spoiled food. Chains in Belgium, Luxembourg, Sweden and Estonia were affected, and France 24 also lists Finland, Ireland and the Netherlands. Delhaize and Colruyt said an overnight IT incident hit dozens of their stores in Belgium and Luxembourg. In Sweden, ICA said a limited number of stores were affected, and Coop said six stores in central Sweden had problems. An ICA Kvantum store in Sjöbo said its units had been hacked and set to 50 degrees Celsius (122 Fahrenheit). The incidents follow an October attack on hundreds of French supermarkets, which targeted a fridge regulation system made by Danfoss. Ahold Delhaize had reported a cybersecurity incident to Dutch police in October.

The New York Post leads with a Stockholm dateline and store-level detail: the Sjöbo Facebook post, ICA spokesperson Gustaf Nilsson, Delhaize spokesperson Sarah De Meester saying distribution centers kept running, and Carrefour Belgium citing a cyberattack. CBS News frames the story as the second such episode in under a month, raising concerns about interlinked infrastructure. It relies on Reuters, quotes Delhaize's De Meester, adds Colruyt and the French chains, and cites the Sabcobel CEO and the October police report. Both agree on the Monday timing, the French precedent and the 122-degree figure. The Post gives no outlet-by-outlet French list or Ahold's police report in its opening; CBS gives less on individual Swedish stores. France 24 takes a distinct angle, quoting cybersecurity specialists Antoine Hautin and Kevin Tellier on why web-connected refrigeration can be manipulated remotely. Straight Arrow News stresses that dozens more stores were targeted.