Hackers defrost supermarket refrigerators in Sweden - disruptions also occur in Belgium and Luxembourg
In Sweden, Belgium and Luxembourg there were massive disruptions to the cooling and freezing systems due to suspected hacker attacks.
Quick Look
- Cybercriminals have tampered with cooling systems in supermarkets in Sweden, Belgium and Luxembourg.
- Plant temperatures rose dramatically, causing IT disruptions and potential food spoilage.
- The incidents are similar to attacks in France.
AI-generated summary
Why It Matters
Last month there was a large-scale cyber attack on the cooling systems of hundreds of supermarkets in France.
Cybercriminals have once again attacked refrigeration systems in European supermarkets. In Swedish, Belgian and Luxembourg supermarkets, temperatures in the refrigerators and freezers rose dramatically on Monday night. At least one affected store in Sweden attributed this to a cyberattack.
Retail group Ahold Delhaize said an “IT glitch” had affected cooling systems in dozens of its supermarkets in Belgium and Luxembourg. Company spokeswoman Sarah De Meester said the incidents were being investigated. Ahold Delhaize had already reported a cyber attack to the Dutch police last month.
According to the daily newspaper “Aftonbladet”, the Coop cooperative explained that six of its branches were affected. The incident is similar to a large-scale attack in France last month. According to French police, hackers took control of the refrigeration systems of hundreds of supermarkets, leading to food spoilage and fires.
Attacks apparently less serious than recently in France
The ICA Kvantum supermarket in the town of Sjöbo wrote on Facebook that the temperature in the refrigerators and freezers had risen to up to 50 degrees and that the problems were due to a hacker attack. However, the ICA Group did not confirm this. Six supermarkets in the Coop chain also reported problems with the cooling systems.
In Belgium, supermarkets from Delhaize, Carrefour and Spar, among others, are affected. Belga, citing the cooling technology service provider Sabcobel, reports that around twenty systems have been affected so far.
As things stand, the extent of the attack in Belgium is significantly lower than the attack in France in the middle of last month. Around 150 shops there were affected at the time.
Also problems in Ireland and Estonia?
According to Sabcobel, the systems were put into defrost mode remotely. “We started mobilizing technicians from 1 a.m. tonight to bring the situation under control,” Sabcobel CEO Stephan Moelans told the Belga news agency.
Open Questions
- Who is behind the attacks?
- How exactly did the perpetrators gain access to the systems?
