A mass cyberattack compromised Internet-connected refrigeration controllers in around 700 supermarkets across Europe, triggering spoilage of large quantities of perishable merchandise and, in some cases, fires. French authorities said the remotely operable systems, which allow technicians to administer store-scale refrigeration, were breached.
Attackers leveraged the controllers’ remote-access capabilities and used defrosters to push refrigerators to up to 50°C (122°F), with food spoilage and electrical anomalies detected by the time the incident was discovered.
The affected devices come from Danfoss, Dixell, and Copeland, and several have recently-fixed critical vulnerabilities that allow remote access with administrator-level permissions. The report notes that some Danfoss controllers used a daily password generated from firmware and date, meaning a researcher with access to the code could reproduce credentials on other devices lacking updated firmware.
In addition to outdated firmware, stores reportedly failed to place these devices behind VPNs or IP allowlists, increasing exposure. Industry observers cited by the article say that basic cyber hygiene—excluding public Internet access, restricting remote access behind VPNs and IP allowlists, updating third‑party equipment through controlled networks, changing default credentials, and applying current patches—could have prevented the incident.
The incident is described as potentially costing tens to hundreds of millions of euros across multiple countries and raises questions about the prioritisation of security versus cost in retail operations. The perpetrator behind the attack has not been identified, and motives remain uncertain.