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Hackers remotely attacked connected refrigeration systems at French supermarkets from Sunday night, Al Jazeera reports, pushing temperatures as high as 50°C (122°F) and causing fires and spoiled food. The Paris prosecutor's office has opened an investigation.
Intermarché and Coopérative U confirmed the attack on Monday. Coopérative U said its refrigeration had been disrupted since Sunday night. Al Jazeera reports that E.Leclerc, Carrefour and Monoprix also had affected stores. Store counts differ between outlets, but reports describe hundreds of stores across several chains.
The Paris prosecutor's office described a large-scale attack on connected refrigerators at several major food retailers. Investigators aim to identify the victims and link them to reported food losses and triggered fire alarms, Euronews reports.
Intermarché said affected stores will have to throw away all fresh and frozen products. The chain also warned that insurance policies may not cover this type of incident. Its chief executive estimated losses of tens of millions of euros nationwide in a single day.
Dominique Schelcher, chief executive of Coopérative U, called the attack "unprecedented." Prime Minister Sébastien Lecornu ordered the national cybersecurity agency, ANSSI, to investigate. ANSSI reportedly identified a vulnerability in software supplied by Danfoss, a Danish company.
Danfoss said the affected units were running outdated firmware and that it had long advised customers to update. The security firm Claroty had published research on August 9 describing Danfoss vulnerabilities that could let attackers bypass authentication. France's retail federation has asked Danfoss for full transparency.
The hackers have not been identified. Al Jazeera reports that stores in Spain, Portugal, Poland, Germany and Belgium may also have been affected, and France is coordinating with European counterparts. Euronews notes that President Emmanuel Macron ordered measures last month to protect critical infrastructure against Russian hybrid attacks.
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