Supermarkets across Sweden, Belgium, and Luxembourg have reported overnight freezers’ disruptions, with some affected retailers attributing the sudden failures to suspected cyberattack targeting their cooling systems.
An affected Swedish store reported that someone had remotely adjusted its refrigeration controls to 50°C (122°F). However, reported temperatures varied between locations, and the precise method behind the latest incidents remains under investigation. Consequently, the refrigeration failures disrupted the cold chain, prompting some retailers to temporarily close their stores while employees inspected affected products, removed spoiled stock, and worked to restore normal operations.
Massive Inventory Losses
In Sweden, several ICA stores reported refrigeration failures. This includes several store locations in Sjöbo and Tomelilla. Impacted stores had to cease operations the morning to handle spoiled goods. In Belgium, approximately 40 Delhaize supermarkets and 15 Carrefour Belgium locations experienced sharp temperature spikes in their cooling units. Additionally, Ahold Delhaize reported that the incident had affected refrigeration and freezer systems at stores in Luxembourg, extending the geographical scope of the reported disruptions.
The sudden temperature increases disrupted the controlled storage conditions needed to preserve fresh and frozen products. According to the BBC, local media reported that thousands of euros worth of food had to be thrown away, with one ICA store in Sweden revealing that its freezer temperatures had been set to 50°C (122°F). Retailers were forced to inspect affected dairy products, meat, and other perishable goods, clearing entire aisles and discarding large quantities of inventory to avoid food safety risks. The Financial Times reported that the incidents caused food losses worth millions of euros across affected supermarkets in Sweden and Belgium. However, the full extent of the financial damage, including additional maintenance costs and losses from temporary closures, remains unclear.
Hackers targeted outdated Firmware
Investigators are examining the incidents affecting connected refrigeration systems. However, the precise entry points, methods used, and any connection between the disruptions in different countries remain unconfirmed. Modern supermarkets use connected Internet of Things (IoT) software. This enables maintenance teams to monitor and adjust refrigeration ecosystems remotely.
In the earlier French incident, Danfoss said affected refrigeration units were running outdated firmware. Reports also identified equipment that no longer received security updates. These weaknesses can increase vulnerability to exploitation, although investigators have not publicly established whether the same circumstances explain the latest disruptions. This software had reached its end-of-support life cycle. This left them entirely unprotected against modern exploitation.
This incident is similar to a massive attack that struck hundreds of French supermarkets. During their investigation into the French incident, authorities identified compromises involving refrigeration controllers from Danish manufacturer Danfoss, as well as Copeland and Dixell. The findings highlighted security concerns involving equipment used to monitor and manage commercial cooling systems remotely.
Hybrid Warfare?
In his statement, the European Commissioner for Agriculture and Food, Christophe Hansens said that the weaponization of food has become a reality.
Separately, at least six US military commissaries experienced unexplained refrigeration failures in late August 2026. Reporting published in late October revealed that investigators were treating those incidents as a suspected cyberattack. US Army criminal investigators have contacted French law enforcement to better understand the European refrigeration outages. However, authorities have not publicly confirmed that the incidents share a perpetrator or form part of a state-sponsored campaign. Any suggestion that attackers are testing Western infrastructure for future disruption therefore remains speculative.
