Arabic version: هجوم إلكتروني يتسبب في ارتفاع حرارة أنظمة التبريد في متاجر فرنسية

According to Cnbc, hackers targeted hundreds of French supermarkets, disrupting refrigeration systems and causing refrigerators and freezers to overheat. The incident spoiled food, while reports said overheating equipment sparked fires across supermarkets in the region.

Refrigeration units at Carrefour, Monoprix, Intermarché and Coopérative U, among other chains, reportedly reached as much as 50 degrees Celsius, or 122 degrees Fahrenheit, overnight. Coopérative U chief executive Dominique Schelcher said cyberattacks affected refrigeration production facilities at several stores and called the targeting of equipment essential for fresh products and food supply “extremely serious and unprecedented.”

Les Mousquetaires said the attack affected a service provider that manages refrigeration systems at some stores. It expects damage affecting around 180 stores to reach several million euros in losses. The group said fresh and frozen food displays were out of service in some locations and that Intermarché and Netto removed and disposed of affected products to protect consumer safety.

A Les Mousquetaires spokesperson said overheating caused smoke in some stores, but no fires were reported. European Commissioner for Agriculture and Food Christophe Hansen condemned the attack and said food security needs greater attention, warning that “the weaponization of food has become a reality.”

Cyberthreat intelligence analyst Felix Aime said the attack affected several European countries, including Spain, Portugal, Poland, Germany and Belgium. Separately, Ahold Delhaize said it was dealing with a security issue within its network and had taken systems offline, while its stores remained open.