iStockphoto / yokaew / fadfebrian
ominous image of a hacker next to a grocery store freezer aisle
Hackers launched a massive cyber attack in France on Tuesday, targeting a vulnerability in refrigerators that enabled them to take control over temperatures. By taking control of the temperature regulation system, hackers spiked temperatures inside of fridges at hundreds of grocery stores causing untold damage from food spoilage and it also sparked fires according to reports.
Following the cyber attack, European Commissioner for Agriculture and Food Christophe Hansen stated “the weaponization of food has become a reality.”
Hackers Target Hundreds Of Grocery Stores In France
Among the grocery store chains that were impacted include Carrefour, Monoprix, the Les Mousquetaires-owned Intermarché, and Coopérative U. CNBC and Reuters reports the cyber attack led to refrigerator temperatures being turned up to 122 degrees Fahrenheit (50 degrees Celsius), and with the cyber attack taking place overnight it caused an untold amount of damage.
According to NBC News, there were at least 350 grocery stores impacted by the cyber attack which represents “a small fraction of the total number in France.” Small fraction or not, 350 grocery stores losing its refrigerated food overnight to a cyber attack would still have a concrete impact on access to food in lesser served areas of the country or people who rely on specialty items from stores near their homes.
Reports state that no hacker group has claimed responsibility yet for the widespread attack.
In the video above, Maximilien Robespierre begins with an ominous message of “I hate to say it, but it’s going to get worse.” The implication there being that a cyber attack on 350 grocery stores in France could be a test for attacks elsewhere as much of the Western World moves into the holiday season.
The report from NBC News states that at this point there is no concrete estimate for the total amount of damage caused by these hackers, but estimates range anywhere from $30K-50K for each of the smaller stores and upwards of $220K for the larger stores impacted. At 350 stores hit by the hack, that is a costly cyber attack.
And that is only on the store side. The impact on the supply chain will also be heavy as citizens were relying on that food to eat and it will need to be quickly replaced.
The panels within supermarket refrigerators are light years ahead technologically than the fridges we have at home. They often possess translucent digital screens to serve real-time advertisements for customers.
Digital connectivity is great in many ways, allowing off-site teams to monitor temperatures and the stability of the system, but in this instance hackers were able to identify a widespread vulnerability and cause untold millions of dollars in damage.