A cyberattack on refrigeration systems at hundreds of supermarkets in France has raised the temperature of fridges and freezers to as high as 50 degrees Celsius (122F), spoiling food and causing fires at several stores.
Top retailers Intermarche, Cooperative U, E Leclerc and others confirmed the “unprecedented” cyberattack on Monday.
At least 300 shops of Intermarche or its Netto brand were targeted, along with more than 100 Cooperative U outlets, the retailers told the AFP news agency.
Carrefour said 80 supermarkets were affected, while Monoprix said about 5 percent of its roughly 490 stores were hit. E Leclerc said several of its stores were targeted.
The Paris prosecutor’s office said the “large-scale” ?attack had affected “connected refrigerators in several major food retailers across France”. It led to food losses and fires, the office said.
The attack prompted Prime Minister Sebastien Lecornu to order France’s National Cybersecurity Agency (ANSSI) to investigate, a person in his office told the Reuters news agency.