PARIS: Hackers targeted hundreds of French supermarkets in a cyberattack that reportedly caused refrigerators and freezers to overheat, spoiling food and producing smoke in some stores.
Refrigeration units at supermarket chains including Carrefour, Monoprix, Intermarché and Coopérative U heated up to as much as 50 degrees Celsius (122 degrees Fahrenheit) overnight, Reuters reported Monday. Intermarché is owned by Les Mousquetaires.
Dominique Schelcher, CEO of Coopérative U, confirmed that the cyberattacks had affected "refrigeration production facilities of several stores."
"Attacking equipment that is essential to the preservation of fresh products and the food supply of the French people is extremely serious and unprecedented," Schelcher said in a LinkedIn post. "It is unacceptable."
Felix Aime, a senior cyber threat intelligence analyst at Sekoia Threat Detection and Research, told Reuters the attack also affected several other European countries, including Spain, Portugal, Poland, Germany and Belgium.
European Commissioner for Agriculture and Food Christophe Hansen condemned the attack in a post on X on Monday.
"Food security requires more attention at all levels," Hansen said. "Because the weaponization of food has become a reality."
Les Mousquetaires told CNBC in an email that the damage, which affected about 180 stores, is expected to reach "several million euros in losses." The company said some fresh and frozen food displays were taken out of service after the attack hit a service provider that manages refrigeration systems in some stores.
A company spokesperson said Intermarché and Netto removed and disposed of affected products as quickly as possible to ensure consumer safety.
"In some stores, the overheating of equipment resulted in smoke, but no fires have been reported," the spokesperson said.
The company is awaiting findings from a court-appointed bailiff and insurance experts to determine more precise damage figures.
Ahold Delhaize, the owner of Stop & Shop and the Dutch supermarket chain Albert Heijn, said it was experiencing a "security issue within its network" and had taken systems offline. The company said its stores remained open.
The attack comes amid a broader wave of cybercrime that experts warn is being enhanced by artificial intelligence.
British online fashion retailer Asos reported last week that a security breach exposed some customers' personal information. In July, a small power plant in the United Kingdom was shut down for four days after a cyberattack suspected of being linked to Iran.
Bjorn R. Watn, Interpol's global chief information security officer, recently told CNBC that AI can be used to target multiple victims at once, increasing the scale and speed of attacks.
"It's an evolution and not a revolution," Watn said.
