France Hit by Cyberattack on Supermarket Refrigeration Systems

The incident highlights the vulnerability of many connected devices, sometimes mundane, to the internet. It also underscores the delay in France’s transposition of the European law on cybersecurity. The attack on supermarket refrigeration systems is a clear warning for all industrialists, according to Guillaume Tissier, associate at consulting firm Forward Global and director of the InCyber Forum, a European cybersecurity event held annually in Lille.

Industrial equipment attacks are not new, with power plants, water treatment facilities, and hydroelectric dams frequently targeted due to their critical role in a country’s functioning. Between January 2021 and August 2024, 46 water management entities were affected by a computer security incident, according to the French National Agency for the Security of Information Systems (Anssi).

A relatively ordinary equipment, the supermarket refrigeration system, has been targeted in this case, notes Thierry Delville, president of the digital security commission of the Cercle des directions de la sécurité des entreprises, an organization that represents the security directors of around 150 large French and European companies.