Hackers target French supermarkets, refrigerators affected: millions of euros’ worth of food lost

The main French supermarket chains were hit today by a cyberattack which knocked out fridges and freezers in hundreds of shops, forcing them to throw away fresh and frozen food worth millions of euros. The attack was described as “unprecedented” by the chief executive of Cooperative U, one of France’s major retailers which, alongside E. Leclerc and Intermarché, confirmed to AFP that they had been targeted by hackers.

“Food safety requires greater attention at all levels,” wrote the European Commissioner for Agriculture and Food, Christophe Hansen, on X, condemning the attack and stating that it is now “a reality” that the sector is being targeted by such attacks. According to the specialist website jebosseengrandedistribution.fr, the retail giants Carrefour Market and Monoprix were also affected by the attack, though these supermarket chains have not yet confirmed this. According to reports by Bfmtv, the hackers “managed to remotely trigger the defrosting of the refrigeration systems in numerous shops”. The affected chains have stated that they were forced to discard all the products contained in the refrigerators hit by the cyberattack. E. Leclerc confirmed to AFP that “the cyber-attack affected one of our refrigeration system suppliers”, causing “repercussions on system operations in several stores”. According to informed sources, the refrigeration control systems of a Danish company were targeted.

A source close to the French Prime Minister Sébastien Lecornu has said that the cyber security agency has already identified “a vulnerability in software supplied by a Danish company and contacted the vendors”. Furthermore, ‘it has been in touch with its European counterparts, in case other countries are affected’. The agency, the source concludes, is trying to ‘identify other French companies involved in order to alert them’ and ‘prevent the consequences of the cyberattack from spreading’. “Targeting equipment essential for preserving fresh produce and the food supply for the French public is extremely serious and unprecedented. It is unacceptable”, wrote Dominique Schelcher, executive director of Cooperative U, Dominique Schelcher, on X, confirming that the attack had begun to cause refrigerators to malfunction from Sunday night.

The office of the Paris public prosecutor has confirmed to AFP that an investigation has been launched into this ‘large-scale cyberattack that affected the refrigerators of several supermarket chains across France’. The investigation will help “to identify the victims and establish the link with the damage they have suffered in terms of food loss and fires” which were also caused by the cyberattack.

The attack comes at a time when, in Europe, concerns are growing about the potential consequences of cyber-attacks across all sectors. President Emmanuel Macron, a staunch supporter of Ukraine in its fight against the Russian invasion, ordered measures last month to protect France’s critical infrastructure from hybrid attacks by Russia. Cybersecurity experts have explained that industrial equipment, such as refrigeration systems, which were once isolated from the internet, are now connected to the network via sensors or remote monitoring systems. With the ability to attack hundreds of units simultaneously, the attack demonstrated “a certain level of sophistication”, said Antoine Hautin of the cybersecurity consultancy Almond.