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Hackers defrost 100s of French supermarkets fridges, spoiling food

Afr • October 13, 2026

Paris | Hundreds of supermarkets in France were hit by cyberattacks on Sunday night (Monday AEDT) that disabled refrigeration systems and forced stores to throw out damaged food, following warnings that hackers are seeking to cause physical damage.

150 Intermarche stores were hit, a spokesman for owner Groupement Mousquetaires told Bloomberg . Hackers accessed cooling systems and set them to defrost, with refrigerators and freezers heating to 50 degrees for six hours. Meat, frozen items and vegetables had to be tossed out.

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Cyberattack on French Supermarkets Spoils Food by Heating Refrigerators A significant cyberattack occurred on October 11-12, 2026, targeting refrigeration systems at over 300 French supermarkets, including Intermarché, Coopérative U, and E. Leclerc. Hackers manipulated the systems to raise temperatures to 50°C (122°F), leading to extensive food spoilage and fires. The attack exploited vulnerabilities in outdated Danfoss refrigeration controllers, specifically the AK-SM800 and AK-SC355 models, which had not received security updates. Paris prosecutors have opened an investigation into the incident, which has been described as unprecedented and extremely serious by industry leaders. Initial estimates suggest losses could reach tens of millions of euros across the affected chains. The attack has raised concerns about the security of operational technology in the food supply chain. 77 sources 70

Hackers defrost 100s of French supermarkets fridges, spoiling food

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