Hackers target French supermarkets, set freezers to 50 degrees, trigger fires and spoil food

Hackers on Monday targeted supermarkets in France, tampering with freezer systems and raising temperatures to 50 degrees, resulting in spoiled food and fires.

According to Reuters, more than 100 of the chain's supermarkets were targeted, while 180 stores from Intermarché and its Netto brand were affected, with a spokesman saying that another 100 shops were urgently disconnected from the internet to prevent the same thing from happening to them.

Other major food retailers including Carrefour, Monoprix and E.Leclerc were also hit by the attack, which targeted software provided by Danish engineering firm Danfoss.

The Paris prosecutor's office said a "large-scale" attack was "affecting connected refrigerators in several major food retailers across France", leading to food losses and fires.

Prime Minister Sebastien Lecornu has instructed France's National Cybersecurity Agency (ANSSI) to investigate, a spokesperson said.

Felix Aime, a senior cyber threat intelligence analyst ​at Sekoia Threat Detection and Research, said Spain, Portugal, Poland, Germany and Belgium had also been affected.

Les Mousquetaires, owner of retailer Intermarché, said fridges at around 150 of its ⁠stores were heated up to 50 C for six hours overnight.

A spokesperson said all affected food had been discarded to eliminate health risks.