Swedish supermarkets hit by cyberattack on refrigeration systems

Overnight breach disrupts cold chain

Several supermarket chains across Sweden reported widespread food spoilage and temporary store closures overnight after hackers targeted refrigeration and freezer systems at ICA and Coop locations in Skane, Oland, Varmland, Stockholm, Gastrikland and Halsingland, public broadcaster SVT reported.

The breach affected cooling infrastructure operating outside the retailers' central networks, leaving staff to discard thousands of euros worth of ruined inventory.

Staff scramble to clear ruined stock

At ICA Nara in Boda on Oland, store manager Mats Olsson arrived to find water covering the floor and a freezer temperature reading of 55 degrees Celsius (131 degrees Fahrenheit). Six Coop stores in Gastrikland and Halsingland faced similar disruptions, while employees at an ICA location in Sankt Olof worked to clear damaged goods.

"Right now we are emptying the freezers, there is not much else to do. They are about to get cold again, but everything is ruined," manager Dennis Vidal said.

Officials probe isolated networks

ICA press officer Gustaf Nilsson confirmed the company was investigating the incident and assisting affected locations. "We are aware that a limited number of stores have been affected by an incident during the night that affects their refrigeration and freezing systems," he said.

Nilsson added that the compromised connections were isolated from ICA's main corporate infrastructure. Similar disruptions have struck elsewhere in Europe, with Ahold Delhaize supermarkets in Belgium and Luxembourg recently reporting comparable IT incidents.