Suspected cyber-attack hits supermarket freezers in Belgium and Sweden, temperatures set to 50C

Dozens of supermarkets in Belgium and Sweden have been hit by a suspected cyber-attack affecting their refrigerators and freezers. At one store in Sweden, the freezer temperature was set to 50 degrees Celsius (122F). According to local media reports, thousands of euros worth of food has had to be thrown away.

In Belgium, around 40 stores of Delhaize, one of the country's biggest supermarket chains, were affected. Delhaize told Belgian media that a ‘computer incident’ had occurred overnight at 40 shops, and a spokesperson described it as an ‘IT incident affecting the refrigeration systems in a number of Delhaize stores’. French-owned supermarket Carrefour said 15 of its Belgian stores were affected and that it was currently analysing the incident.

Colruyt, which operates Spar stores in Belgium, said the fridges in around five Spar stores had been affected, adding that it was doing everything it could to resolve the issue and that no Colruyt stores were affected. Dutch media reported that Delhaize stores in Luxembourg have also been affected.

In Sweden, a spokesperson for the ICA chain confirmed an incident overnight affecting a small number of ICA stores operating outside the company's central network, which hit their fridges and freezers. ICA said it was supporting the affected stores in managing the situation. One ICA branch in Sjöbo, in southern Sweden, wrote on social media that its refrigerators and freezers had been hacked overnight and the temperature set to 50 degrees. The store was closed earlier but has now reopened to customers.

Another Swedish chain, Coop, told the BBC that seven of its 800 stores in Sweden were affected, but that the situation was currently contained and under control. In Ireland, 13 SuperValu shops have also been impacted.

Belgian media reported on Monday morning that temperatures in supermarket refrigerators had suddenly spiked, leading stores to throw food away. Delhaize alerted its store managers early on Monday morning about problems with refrigerators, and Belgian broadcaster RTBF cited a store manager as saying the problems were due to a cyberattack like those in France.

The incident follows a similar wave in France last month. In mid-October, hundreds of French supermarkets were hit, when attackers appeared to remotely manipulate the fridges' defrosting mechanisms so that they overheated. The French attacks targeted refrigerators made by Danfoss, a Danish manufacturer, and triggered a response from the country's prime minister and its cybersecurity agency.

It is not confirmed, however, that the new attacks are connected to the French incidents or used the same software vulnerabilities. Danfoss did not immediately respond to a request for comment. It is also not clear who is behind the attack.

The Centre for Cybersecurity Belgium said the agency is closely following the incident. The affected chains say they are working to restore normal conditions at the stores that were hit.