Supermarkets across Europe were hit Monday by a new wave of apparent cyberattacks affecting fridges and freezers.The incidents caused temperature spikes and spoiled food at stores in Sweden, the Netherlands, Belgium, Ireland, Luxembourg, and Estonia.It follows a cyberattack in France last month, in which police said hackers seized control of cooling units at hundreds of supermarkets, raising temperatures as high as 122 degrees Fahrenheit and causing fires and food losses.Authorities have not indicated who could have been behind the incidents.
There were no claims of responsibility.The issues come as the continent confronts broader security fears stemming from Russia’s war in Ukraine.The new cyberattack highlights how digital threats can increasingly affect citizens’ everyday lives, the European Commission said Monday.
Spoiled refrigerated food is discarded outside an ICA store in Stockholm on Monday.Fredrik Sandberg / AFP via GettyThe Ahold Delhaize supermarket chain in the Netherlands told NBC News on Monday that it was aware of an “IT incident” affecting the refrigeration systems in a number of its stores.“Our teams are working hard to fully assess the situation,” the company said in an email.
Stephan Moelans, the CEO of Belgian refrigeration company Sabcobel, which operates Delhaize’s systems, told the Belga news agency that the incident was a cyberattack, in which the units’ evaporators were switched to defrost mode.For SubscribersFOR SUBSCRIBERSWho gets to check the AI giants? A new group wants to set the rulesFOR SUBSCRIBERSThe fight for young men comes to MichiganFOR SUBSCRIBERS‘A genuine toss-up’: Senate battle comes down to red states and Republican votersFOR SUBSCRIBERSEnergy drinks linked to higher risk of cardiac arrest in young adults, study findsFOR SUBSCRIBERSTrump holds final rally of a 28-stop midterm blitz FOR SUBSCRIBERSSome crewmembers on the evacuated cruise ship say they’re waiting without pay in CambodiaFOR SUBSCRIBER...