Hackers target European refrigeration controllers causing food spoilage

Unidentified hackers gained unauthorized access to refrigeration controllers across Europe and altered their settings to defrost mode, Unit 42 reported. The attacks forced hundreds of supermarkets throughout the region to discard spoiled food. BigGo Finance separately reported that hackers also targeted French blood bank refrigerators in related cold chain attacks. [1][2]

Unit 42 stated that it has monitored developments linked to the European refrigeration cyberattacks since at least October 2026. The timing of the intrusion is notable because retailers must keep up inventory levels to meet increased shopper spending during the holiday period. [1]

As FTMQ Security reported earlier, an overnight attack targeted internet-exposed Danfoss and Copeland refrigeration controllers. That activity affected more than 100 stores across Belgium, Estonia, Ireland, Luxembourg, the Netherlands, and Sweden, forcing units into defrost mode and destroying fresh food and dairy inventory. [4]

Modern refrigeration operates as a self-sustaining heat exchanger process, according to background details from Wikipedia. Thermal energy is moved against a temperature gradient using a heat-transfer working fluid, which absorbs heat from a low-temperature environment and releases it into a higher-temperature space. [3]