Fridge hacks spread across Europe after earlier strikes in France
What's new: retailers in Belgium, Luxembourg, Sweden, Estonia, Ireland and Finland reported spoiled stock as investigators traced a broader pattern hitting food-cooling systems.
Cyberattacks on supermarket refrigeration systems spread across Europe this week, disrupting stores in Belgium, Luxembourg, Sweden, Estonia, Ireland and Finland after a larger October strike in France. Retailers including Ahold Delhaize, Carrefour, Intermarché, IKEA, ICA, Kesko, Supervalu and One Selver reported outages or overheating that forced some stores to discard food. CNBC reported some refrigerators reached 50 degrees Celsius. NPR said similar attacks have also hit a food plant in Israel and U.S. military bases in recent months, suggesting a widening campaign against internet-connected cooling equipment. Security experts told NPR the incidents show how poorly protected industrial control systems can be exploited at scale.