Fridges hacked, food spoiled: Cyberattack disrupts supermarkets across Europe

File photo: View of empty refrigerators at the frozen food aisle inside an Intermarche supermarket in Paris after a cyberattack A suspected cyberattack targeting supermarket refrigeration systems has affected stores in Belgium, Estonia, Sweden and Ireland, forcing retailers to discard large quantities of spoiled food after the temperatures of fridges and freezers were remotely raised.The incident, reported overnight between Sunday and Monday, has hit several major supermarket chains, including Delhaize and Carrefour in Belgium, ICA and Coop in Sweden, and SuperValu in Ireland. Thirteen SuperValu stores were affected, while around 40 Delhaize outlets and 15 Carrefour stores in Belgium reported problems.In Belgium, some refrigeration units were reportedly set to as high as 70 degrees Celsius, causing an estimated €100,000 worth of food to be discarded at one Delhaize branch alone, according to local media reports. The total losses across affected stores could run into millions of euros, although a consolidated estimate has not been released.Carrefour Belgium spokesman Mich Vergauwen described the incident as a cyberattack, saying there was no other explanation, but added that its imp...