Refrigeration systems at supermarkets across seven European countries were switched to defrost mode in what authorities believe is a coordinated cyber-attack. Around 40 Delhaize supermarkets in Belgium and Luxembourg were hit, along with smaller numbers of stores in Sweden, Ireland, the Netherlands, Estonia and Finland. Freezer temperatures rose to as high as 50 degrees Celsius (122 Fahrenheit), forcing stores to discard millions of euros worth of food.
Stephan Moelans, CEO of Sabcobel, the Belgian company that manufactures some affected refrigerators, told the Belga news agency the incident was a cyber-attack and that his company had been "working all night and morning to disconnect the affected units from the network." He said the attack used the same method as a similar incident in October that hit hundreds of French supermarkets. Moelans added that while Sabcobel had worked to protect against the vulnerability since the French attack, the units required physical modifications beyond software updates.
One Delhaize store in Hoeilaart, Belgium lost an estimated 100,000 euros in produce. A store manager at an ICA supermarket in Stockholm was photographed discarding bags of spoiled food. Seven of Coop's 800 Swedish stores were affected but the situation is "contained and under control," the company told the BBC. Carrefour reported only 15 of its Belgian stores were hit. In Ireland, 13 SuperValu supermarkets were affected.
National cyber-security agencies in Belgium and Sweden said they were monitoring the incident. The UK's National Cyber Security Centre said it was working with international partners to "fully understand details of an incident." No incidents have been reported in the UK. It is unclear who is behind the attack. US authorities are investigating whether refrigeration malfunctions at American military bases in August could be linked.