Cyber attack alarm in Europe! Thousands of products destroyed

A wave of cyberattacks that began in France and targeted retail chains spread to Belgium and Sweden. Attacks on the cooling systems of supermarkets caused freezer temperatures to rise to 15 degrees, and in some stores up to 55 degrees. As the cold chain was disrupted, a large number of food products were destroyed, and the possibility of a cyberattack is being investigated.

Freezer Temperatures Reached 15 Degrees in Belgium

After the attacks targeting famous retail chains on October 12 in France, a similar incident occurred in Belgium. An abnormal rise in temperature was observed in the cooling and freezer units of many stores belonging to Delhaize, one of the country's leading supermarket chains.

The chain management sent an urgent message to store managers around 4:00 a.m., reporting system failures at some branches. Due to the malfunction, freezer temperatures rose to 15 degrees in particular.

Cold Chain Disrupted, Products Destroyed

After the temperature rise, store staff rushed to salvage the products. While some businesses secured refrigerated trucks to protect the food, in stores where the cold chain could not be maintained, all items in refrigerators and freezers were destroyed.

It was reported that the technical team responsible for Delhaize Group's refrigeration systems also started work to address the fault.

In Sweden, refrigerator temperatures have risen to 55 degrees.

Another story about the cyber‑attack allegations came from Sweden. According to reports in Swedish media, the refrigeration systems of supermarket chains operating in many cities, including the capital Stockholm, were targeted.

Mats Olsson, an official at the Ica store in Öland, said that the air temperature inside the refrigerators had been raised to 55 degrees. Olsson said that when he arrived at the store in the morning, everything was covered in water.

Various Ica branches announced on their social‑media accounts that a large number of food items had spoiled due to an attack on the refrigeration systems, particularly frozen foods were affected.

Coop also affected by attacks.

Sweden's other major supermarket chain Coop also announced that it was affected by problems in its cooling systems.

Coop store official Carlos Cancino said he had received information that freezers and refrigerators at six branches nationwide were experiencing problems.

Following the incidents, technical investigations were launched in the supermarket chains, but it has not yet been officially confirmed whether the problems were caused by a cyber attack. Officials are investigating the cause of similar cooling system failures that have emerged in different European countries.