Cyberattack disrupts supermarket refrigeration in France and Netherlands
A cyberattack compromised cooling systems in French and Dutch supermarkets, causing food spoilage. Reports claim fridges reached 50°C.
English · Original discussion in Spanish · Published
Cyberattack disrupts supermarket refrigeration in France and Netherlands
Between Sunday and Monday, hundreds of supermarkets in France suffered a cyberattack that, according to messages shared online, manipulated the thermostats of their cold storage units. If confirmed, this would result in tons of fresh and frozen food lost at chains like Intermarché, Super U, and Leclerc. The alert later extended to the Netherlands, where Albert Heijn, Etos, and Gall & Gall reported significant IT disruptions, with Delhaize also mentioned subsequently. A striking figure circulating is that equipment allegedly hit 50 °C, a temperature several participants deem impossible for a system designed only to cool. This incident has peine the debate on the trend of connecting every appliance to the internet.
What is known about the attack on French supermarkets?
According to information disseminated in the early hours, the attack targeted the control software of refrigeration systems. The most repeated hypothesis points to a vulnerability in older software from Danish manufacturer Danfoss, which allegedly allowed attackers to remotely activate a continuous defrost mode. This mode, designed to remove frost from evaporators, heats the unit's resistors. If not stopped, the chamber stops cooling and temperatures rise to match the store's ambient environment. Hence the talk of fridges at 50 °C: it is not that the device heats up, but that it stops cooling and ambient heat does the rest, according to this unconfirmed explanation.
The chain of affected stores did not stop in France. Within hours, Dutch retailer Albert Heijn and its subsidiaries Etos and Gall & Gall reported IT interruptions. Delhaize was also mentioned later. The pattern was identical: networked refrigeration systems, third-party software, and a massive attack surface.
Why are refrigerators connected to the internet?
The short answer is cost savings. The long answer relates to outsourcing maintenance tasks. If the thermostat is networked, a technician can adjust temperatures from a remote office without traveling. This reduces labor costs and allows monitoring dozens of stores from a single point. The problem is that each connected device is an entry point. And if the software is outdated and not updated, that door remains open.
Some argue convenience justifies the risk: being able to raise home blinds or schedule heating via mobile are real advantages. Against this weighs a simple argument: if the system fails, the damage is not a domestic inconvenience, but tons of lost food and millions in losses. The balance is unclear.
Technical skepticism: a fridge cannot reach 50 °C
Several participants questioned the 50 °C figure. A compression-based refrigeration system can only cool; it does not transport heat from outside to inside. At most, if the motor stops, the chamber reaches the store's ambient temperature. In a climate-controlled shop, this rarely exceeds 25-30 °C. The 50 °C figure would only make sense if the defrost mode activates electrical resistors that heat the evaporator, and those resistors are not designed for continuous operation. Could the attack force this mode without stopping? That is the explanation suggested online, but it is not officially confirmed.
The technical debate does not invalidate the attack. It does nuance the narrative: extreme temperatures may have been a side effect of continuous defrosting, not the device's ability to turn into an oven.
Context: cybersecurity, AI, and the mania for connecting everything
This episode fits a broader trend. Some argue that artificial intelligence is accelerating the ability to find vulnerabilities in legacy software. What previously required a team of experts could now be done by a trained model in seconds, according to this view. Industrial systems, designed to last decades, are the perfect target: no one updates them because they work, and no one disconnects them because they save costs.
Outsourcing maintenance has created a paradox. Chains hire software to avoid hiring technicians, but when the software fails, there is no technician on-site to fix it personally. The power button still exists, but no one is in the store to press it.
The attack is unresolved. Affected chains have not confirmed the full extent of losses nor whether systems are restored. What is clear is that next time someone proposes connecting the cold chain to Wi-Fi to save a few euros, this week should be shown to them.
Between Sunday and Monday, hundreds of supermarkets in France suffered a cyberattack that, according to messages shared online, manipulated the thermostats of their cold storage units. If confirmed, this would result in tons of fresh and frozen food lost at chains like Intermarché, Super U, and Leclerc. The alert later extended to the Netherlands, where Albert Heijn, Etos, and Gall & Gall reported significant IT disruptions, with Delhaize also mentioned subsequently. A striking figure circulating is that equipment allegedly hit 50 °C, a temperature several participants deem impossible for a system designed only to cool. This incident has peine the debate on the trend of connecting every appliance to the internet.
What is known about the attack on French supermarkets?
According to information disseminated in the early hours, the attack targeted the control software of refrigeration systems. The most repeated hypothesis points to a vulnerability in older software from Danish manufacturer Danfoss, which allegedly allowed attackers to remotely activate a continuous defrost mode. This mode, designed to remove frost from evaporators, heats the unit's resistors. If not stopped, the chamber stops cooling and temperatures rise to match the store's ambient environment. Hence the talk of fridges at 50 °C: it is not that the device heats up, but that it stops cooling and ambient heat does the rest, according to this unconfirmed explanation.
The chain of affected stores did not stop in France. Within hours, Dutch retailer Albert Heijn and its subsidiaries Etos and Gall & Gall reported IT interruptions. Delhaize was also mentioned later. The pattern was identical: networked refrigeration systems, third-party software, and a massive attack surface.
Why are refrigerators connected to the internet?
The short answer is cost savings. The long answer relates to outsourcing maintenance tasks. If the thermostat is networked, a technician can adjust temperatures from a remote office without traveling. This reduces labor costs and allows monitoring dozens of stores from a single point. The problem is that each connected device is an entry point. And if the software is outdated and not updated, that door remains open.
Some argue convenience justifies the risk: being able to raise home blinds or schedule heating via mobile are real advantages. Against this weighs a simple argument: if the system fails, the damage is not a domestic inconvenience, but tons of lost food and millions in losses. The balance is unclear.
Technical skepticism: a fridge cannot reach 50 °C
Several participants questioned the 50 °C figure. A compression-based refrigeration system can only cool; it does not transport heat from outside to inside. At most, if the motor stops, the chamber reaches the store's ambient temperature. In a climate-controlled shop, this rarely exceeds 25-30 °C. The 50 °C figure would only make sense if the defrost mode activates electrical resistors that heat the evaporator, and those resistors are not designed for continuous operation. Could the attack force this mode without stopping? That is the explanation suggested online, but it is not officially confirmed.
The technical debate does not invalidate the attack. It does nuance the narrative: extreme temperatures may have been a side effect of continuous defrosting, not the device's ability to turn into an oven.
Context: cybersecurity, AI, and the mania for connecting everything
This episode fits a broader trend. Some argue that artificial intelligence is accelerating the ability to find vulnerabilities in legacy software. What previously required a team of experts could now be done by a trained model in seconds, according to this view. Industrial systems, designed to last decades, are the perfect target: no one updates them because they work, and no one disconnects them because they save costs.
Outsourcing maintenance has created a paradox. Chains hire software to avoid hiring technicians, but when the software fails, there is no technician on-site to fix it personally. The power button still exists, but no one is in the store to press it.
The attack is unresolved. Affected chains have not confirmed the full extent of losses nor whether systems are restored. What is clear is that next time someone proposes connecting the cold chain to Wi-Fi to save a few euros, this week should be shown to them.
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Summary of a discussion on Burbuja.info - Foro de economía, actualidad y política., translated from Spanish and reviewed before publication. Read the full discussion (255 replies).
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