Cyberattack Disrupts French Grocery Stores, Causing Product Losses

A cyberattack in France caused significant disruption in several grocery stores, forcing them to discard large quantities of temperature-sensitive products. Hackers targeted refrigeration systems, affecting stores across at least five major chains, including Carrefour, Monoprix, Les Mousquetaires, E. Leclerc, and Coopérative U.

The CEO of Coopérative U, a cooperative consisting of independently owned businesses, confirmed the attack in a social media post. He stated that the cyberattack impacted the cold production facilities in several stores within their network. The CEO emphasized the seriousness of the attack, which targeted essential equipment for preserving fresh produce. An investigation is underway to fully understand the breach.

“Our teams are fully mobilized, in coordination with refrigeration specialists, to restore the situation as quickly as possible. An investigation will be necessary to shed full light on this attack. Targeting equipment essential to the preservation of fresh products and to the food supply of the French people is of extreme gravity and is unprecedented. It is unacceptable,” he said.

The Paris prosecutor’s office described the incident as a “large-scale” attack affecting “connected refrigerators” in major food retailers across the country. Carrefour reported that about 80 of its stores were affected, while Monoprix stated that 5% of its 490 locations experienced disruptions.

Les Mousquetaires noted that the temperatures in fridges at approximately 150 stores increased to 50 degrees Celsius (122 degrees Fahrenheit) for six hours. All affected food items were discarded. The financial impact of the incident is yet to be officially assessed, but experts estimate the losses to surpass 10 million euros, around 11.2 million dollars.

Intermarche CEO Thierry Cotillard mentioned that the nationwide losses might amount to “tens of millions of euros in a single day.” According to a source, hackers targeted refrigerator control systems from the Danish manufacturer Danfoss. Danfoss admitted that most affected equipment were “legacy” products without recent software or security updates. The company had previously advised customers to update outdated firmware.

French Prime Minister Sebastien Lecornu has instructed the National Cybersecurity Agency (ANSSI) to investigate the breach. ANSSI has identified a vulnerability in software from the Danish company and has contacted them for further action.

Christophe Hansen, the European Union’s Commissioner for Agriculture and Food, condemned the cyberattack as a threat to European food safety. He emphasized the need for heightened attention to food security.