A cyberattack targeting refrigeration systems at hundreds of French supermarket outlets has forced stores to discard fresh and frozen food, prompting a police investigation into the incident and reported outbreaks of fire.The attack sparked fires and food losses after they forced fridges up to 50 degrees Celsius for hours overnight at several hundred stores.Intermarche said around 150 to 200 of its stores were affected, while nearly 100 outlets of Cooperative U also reported problems. The attack, which began on Sunday night, remotely triggered the defrosting of refrigerators, disrupting the storage of perishable goods, news agency AFP reported.Dominique Schelcher, chief executive of Cooperative U, described the incident as “unprecedented”. “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.The affected outlets would have to “throw away all of the products” that were fresh and frozen, news agency AFP reported citing Intermarche.The retailer also warned of financial losses and possible insurance complications, saying some policies might not cover such incidents.France’s largest supermarket chain, E Leclerc, was also reportedly affected, according to BFM TV, which said hackers had remotely activated forced defrosting at multiple stores.The Paris prosecutor’s office said an investigation had been launched into “the large-scale cyberattack affecting the refrigerators of several major food retail chains across France”. Investigators will seek to establish the extent of the damage, identify the affected businesses and determine whether the reported food losses were linked to outbreaks of fire.The attack comes amid growing concern across Europe about cyber threats to critical infrastructure and essential services. French President Emmanuel Macron ordered measures last month to protect the country’s critical infrastructure against what he described as Russian “hybrid attacks”, as France continues to support Ukraine in its war against Russia.
