Cyberattacks linked to Europe’s supermarket refrigeration hacking campaign have hit the UK meat processing industry and spread to 13 countries across the continent. Paul Chichester, director of operations at the UK’s National Cyber Security Centre, said the impact on British meat processors has been limited so far and that the agency is working with the affected businesses to secure vulnerable systems.
Poland became the latest country to report incidents after attackers targeted two refrigeration systems at a small grocery store and a food distribution facility, where staff noticed the overheating equipment in time to prevent spoilage. CERT Polska warned that about 70 refrigeration control devices in the country remain exposed online, while confirmed cases now also span Sweden, Belgium, Luxembourg, Estonia, Ireland, the Netherlands, Finland, Denmark, Italy, Romania, Germany and Portugal.
The breaches exploit outdated or end of life internet connected Danfoss controllers, often left on public networks with default passwords, to switch cooling units into continuous defrost mode and raise temperatures up to 50C. NCSC Chief Executive Richard Horne said the earlier October attacks on hundreds of French supermarkets used the same flaws, adding that the campaign reinforces UK government warnings for households to keep emergency supplies.