PARIS: In a major international cyber incident, hackers launched a devastating cyberattack targeting hundreds of supermarkets across France, disrupting commercial refrigeration networks and ruining millions of dollars worth of fresh and frozen food.
Massive Cyberattack Hits French Supermarkets, Hackers Hijack Refrigeration Systems
According to foreign media and judicial authorities, malicious actors managed to compromise the digital software and cooling management systems controlling refrigeration units across more than 100 supermarket chains.
The attackers forcefully pushed the temperature settings of commercial freezers up to 50 degrees Celsius (122°F) by switching units into defrost mode. The extreme thermal spike not only destroyed massive inventories of fresh meat, vegetables, dairy, and frozen goods, but also caused electrical malfunctions and sparked localized fires in dozens of store locations.
Investigation Underway
The Paris Prosecutor’s Office confirmed that major food retail groups nationwide were hit by the coordinated digital assault. Due to strict health, safety, and hygiene regulations, supermarket managements were forced to discard vast quantities of spoiled products, with preliminary financial damages estimated in the millions of dollars.
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Law enforcement and specialized cyber-crime authorities have launched a comprehensive investigation to trace the culprits behind the infrastructure breach.
