Supermarkets in Belgium and Sweden have reportedly experienced cyberattacks affecting their refrigeration and freezer systems. In Belgium, stores belonging to Delhaize, Carrefour and Spar were among those affected, with around 20 installations involved so far, according to Belgian news agency Belga, citing refrigeration technology provider Sabcobel.
The reported impact in Belgium is currently considerably smaller than that of a similar attack in France in the middle of last month, when around 150 stores were affected. Sabcobel said the systems had been remotely switched into defrost mode, causing temperatures to rise. The company began mobilising technicians from 1 a.m. to bring the situation under control, according to its chief executive, Stephan Moelans.
Swedish supermarkets also reported sudden increases in the temperature of their cooling systems. The press chief of supermarket group ICA told news agency TT that a limited number of stores had been affected overnight by an incident impacting their refrigeration and freezer equipment. He did not provide a number of affected locations.
ICA Kvantum in Sjöbo said on Facebook that temperatures in its refrigerators and freezers had risen to as much as 50 degrees and attributed the problems to a hacker attack. The ICA group did not confirm that explanation. Six Coop supermarkets also reported problems with their refrigeration systems.
Sources: Der Spiegel.