Cyber-attack defrosts refrigerators at two French supermarket chains
Intermarché and Cooperative U say an "unprecedented" cyber-attack forced store refrigerators to defrost, destroying fresh and frozen stock; Paris prosecutors have opened an investigation.
Dominique Schelcher, chief executive of Cooperative U, said the attack had affected refrigeration systems since Sunday night. "Targeting equipment essential to the preservation of fresh products and to the food supply of the French people is extremely serious and is unprecedented. It is unacceptable," he wrote on X. He added that the company's teams were "fully mobilised" to restore the situation as quickly as possible, and that "an investigation will be necessary to shed full light on this attack."
Intermarché said branches that were affected would have to "throw away all of the products" that are fresh and frozen. The chain condemned the food waste and financial losses caused by the attack but did not provide figures, and warned there could be problems with insurance policies that do not "cover this type" of in-store incident.
The Paris prosecutor's office told AFP that an investigation had been opened into "the large-scale cyber-attack affecting the refrigerators of several major food retail chains across France". The probe is to "identify the victims and establish the link with the damage they reported in terms of foodstuff losses and the outbreak of fires", the office said.
According to BFM TV, France's largest supermarket chain, E. Leclerc, was also affected, with hackers "managing to remotely trigger the forced defrosting of the refrigeration systems in numerous stores". The broadcaster said temperatures were "altered remotely, resulting in the destruction of stocks of fresh and frozen products". E. Leclerc did not immediately confirm the information. The reported attack also hit other major chains, according to the account confirmed by prosecutors.
The incident comes amid growing concern in Europe about the damage malicious actors can cause through cyber-attacks across all sectors. President Emmanuel Macron, a strong supporter of Ukraine in its fight against the Russian invasion, last month ordered measures to protect France's critical infrastructure from Russian "hybrid attacks".