France blames Iran for cyberattack on supermarket refrigeration systems
The French government has blamed Iran for cyberattacks on the refrigeration systems of supermarkets across France. The attacks, carried out on October 11 and 12, spoiled large quantities of food and caused fires in some places.
The information was reported on Monday (November 9) by international news outlet Al Jazeera. French Foreign Minister Jean-Noël Barrot said investigators believe a cyber unit linked to Iran's Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) was involved in the attacks.
Iran's ambassador in Paris has been summoned to explain. Barrot said a large-scale cyberattack aimed at sabotage on French soil was unprecedented, and that the blow to the country's interests and the safety of its people would be answered.
The Paris prosecutor's office said it has applied for international arrest warrants for the head of the IRGC-linked cyber unit known as 'Shahid Kaveh' and his two deputies.
Investigators claim the attackers entered the supermarkets' refrigeration systems through the internet and remotely raised the temperature to around 50 degrees Celsius. Large quantities of food spoiled overnight, and in some places equipment melted and fires broke out.
Several major supermarket chains were hit, including E.Leclerc, Intermarché, Carrefour, Monoprix and Coopérative U. At least 300 Intermarché and Netto stores, more than 100 Coopérative U stores and 80 Carrefour stores were damaged, along with about 5 percent of Monoprix's roughly 490 stores.
On November 2, similar incidents also occurred in Belgium, Estonia, Ireland, Luxembourg and Sweden, damaging dozens of stores and a food distribution centre.
Alongside the investigation, France is pursuing European-level sanctions against Iran over the incident.
Jody Westby, chief executive of Global Cyber Risk LLC, said identifying the true source of a cyberattack is difficult, as hackers use networks in different countries to hide their identity and location.
The affected supermarkets have suffered major financial losses from the spoiled food, and investigators are assessing the scale of the attacks and the extent of the damage.
