Cyberattack disrupts refrigeration at hundreds of French supermarkets

Attackers remotely changed supermarket refrigeration settings at hundreds of stores in France overnight from October 11 to 12.

The affected equipment included controllers made by Danish company Danfoss that manage store fridges and freezers.

Some units reportedly reached 50°C, causing food to spoil and, in some cases, fires.

Intermarché and Netto reported about 150 affected stores in one account and at least 300 in another, while Carrefour reported 80 and Coopérative U reported 80 of its 2,000 stores.

The reported store counts differ, and not every affected store lost food; Intermarché said its affected stores discarded the products concerned.

Danfoss said most affected units were older models without security updates, while some newer units were running outdated firmware.

Authorities have not confirmed how attackers got in or whether known flaws were used, and a French investigation is under way.

CERT-FR advised operators to disconnect the controllers or tightly restrict access, while Danfoss has urged replacement of older equipment.