Freezers in Sweden, Belgium overheat following possible cyberattacks

What the report says

Suspected cyberattacks have caused refrigeration and freezer systems to overheat in supermarket stores across several European countries, including Sweden, Ireland, Belgium, Luxembourg and Estonia, according to Reuters reporting published by Al Jazeera on Monday. Retailers and authorities said the incidents involved sudden temperature spikes in cooling equipment, raising concerns about the security of operational technology used in grocery supply chains.

In Sweden, the national cybersecurity centre said it was responding to multiple incidents affecting store cooling systems, while retailers ICA, Coop and Axfood reported problems at some stores and at a distribution centre near Gothenburg. In Ireland, SuperValu said refrigeration systems in a specific model had been affected at 13 of its 223 stores. In Belgium and Luxembourg, reported temperature increases affected dozens of Ahold Delhaize stores, while Colruyt Group said five Spar shops were hit. Estonia also reported an impact on at least one supermarket chain, according to a technology supplier.

The article says the latest incidents follow an earlier cyberattack on supermarket refrigeration systems in France, where temperatures reportedly rose high enough to spoil food and trigger fires in some stores. Some affected businesses said systems were switched into defrost mode or set to unusually high temperatures. The reporting did not identify a single actor behind the incidents, but it highlights how exposed industrial and retail control systems can be when they are not promptly updated or patched.