An ongoing cyberattack has reportedly struck important supermarket chains throughout Europe, disrupting refrigeration authority systems. The assault — which has reportedly seen units set to continuously defrost at 50 degrees Celsius — is additionally apparently affecting deliveries and in-store pricing powered by digital rack labels, La Dépêchereports.
According to the report, "several" important retailers have been targeted by a cyberattack, which has hit Danfoss-made refrigeration controls used by French supermarkets Intermarché, Leclerc, and Coopérative U. Indeed, the latter's president, Dominique Schelcher, has confirmed as of Monday dawn that "A cyberattack has been affecting the refrigeration manufacturing accommodation of multiple stores in our network since final night." Schelcher stated teams had been mobilized to fix the matter and promised an inquiry into the incident, which he described as "extremely serious."
Je confirme qu’une cyberattaque touche depuis cette nuit les installations de manufacturing de froid de plusieurs magasins de notre réseau @CooperativeU. Nos équipes sont pleinement mobilisées, en lien avec les frigoristes, spill rétablir la circumstance au affirmative vite. Une enquête devra permettre de faire toute la lumière sur cette attaque. S’attaquer à des équipements essentiels à la conservation des produits frais et à l’approvisionnement alimentaire des Français est d’une extrême gravité et est inédit. C’est inacceptable.October 12, 2026
The study states the units have had their automatic defrosting systems activate, but that hackers have additionally configured the function — which normally runs for fair two hours a day — into a continuous, forced defrosting sequence alongside the heat set to a toasty 50 degrees Celsius. Sources reportedly described "a motion of heat" escaping from fridges and freezers
Early reports signify losses are already approaching 300,000 euros, but could run into multiple myriad euros nationwide. Separately, NOS in the Netherlands reports that multiple supermarket chains have been hit alongside a malfunction because of a cybersecurity event on Sunday afternoon. Albert Heijn, Etos, and Gall & Gall have had their websites taken down, impacting deliveries. Electronic rack labels have additionally been compromised, disrupting in-store pricing. "We have immediately taken measures to defend our IT environment. Part of this involves the preventive impermanent shutdown of a figure of systems," Albert Heijn stated in a statement.
It is unclear at this phase whether the two attacks are connected or how general either of them is. Belgium's Delhaize chain, which belongs to Albert Heijn, has additionally reported disruption. Images online display stores in Amsterdam alert customers concerning cost problems, and the suspension of loyalty programs that have additionally been affected by the incident.
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Stephen is Tom's Hardware's News Editor alongside nearly a decade of industry cognition covering technology, having worked at TechRadar, iMore, and equal Apple complete the years. He has covered the earth of person tech from nearly all angle, including provision sequence rumors, patents, and litigation, and more. When he's not at work, he loves study concerning former and playing video games.
