Cybercriminals have again targeted refrigeration systems at European supermarkets, reportedly causing refrigerators and freezers in Belgium and Sweden to become warmer. The incidents were reported by the news agencies Belga and TT.
In Belgium, stores belonging to Delhaize, Carrefour and Spar were among those affected. Cooling technology provider Sabcobel told Belga that around 20 installations had been impacted so far. The scale is considerably smaller than a similar attack in France in the middle of the previous month, when about 150 stores were affected.
According to Sabcobel, the systems were remotely switched into defrost mode. Chief executive Stephan Moelans told Belga that the company began mobilizing technicians from 1 a.m. to bring the situation under control.
Swedish supermarkets also reported sudden temperature increases in their cooling equipment. The press chief of supermarket group ICA told TT that a limited number of stores had been affected overnight by an incident involving their refrigeration and freezer systems. The company did not disclose how many locations were involved.
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 cyberattack. ICA did not confirm that claim. Six Coop supermarkets also reported issues with their cooling systems.
Sources: t3n.