France blames Iran for supermarket fridge cyberattack

France has laid the blame on Iran's Revolutionary Guards for a wave of cyberattacks that put commercial refrigerators and freezers out of action across the country last month.The hacks that struck hundreds of French supermarkets in early October were among the most disruptive cyberattacks of the Iran war that began in February, a conflict that has been marked by scattered incidents of alleged digital disruption. These have included hacks against the Los Angeles transit system in March, against US water treatment plants in July and against ships bound for the United States in August.French officials made the accusation on Monday, while at the same time warning that Iran would face consequences.Jean-Noël Barrot, the French Foreign Minister, said the Iranian ambassador had been summoned to France's foreign ministry. He also threatened further EU sanctions against Iran.The French announcement came just minutes after Reuters reported that investigators privately suspected Iran of being behind the attacks.Iran's mission to the United Nations did not return messages seeking comment. Iran routinely denies carrying out malicious cyber operations.The October attacks were followed by even a fresh wave of cyberattacks that even affected refrigerators used by French blood banks (AP)The 11 October cyberattack appeared to have ​been easy to pull off, cybersecurity experts previously told Reuters. The firm behind many of the stricken units said that several were obsolete or were running outdated firmware, which could have made it easy for hackers to break in.The effects were still dramatic. Some refrigerators had the temperature turned up so high they caught fire. In the hours after the hack, supermarket employees carted boxes full of perished meat and melted ice cream into giant trash containers. The attack's total costs could add up to tens of millions of euros nationwide, one French supermarket owner estimated.In the hours following the hack, supermarket employees carted boxes full of spoiled meat and melted ice cream into giant trash containers (Reuters)The October hacks were followed this month by a second wave of hacking that hit more than 100 establishments across Europe and even affected refrigerators used by French blood banks, prompting employees there to have to move some of the blood to different cold storage units.The seemingly straightforward nature of the refrigerator hacks – and their repetition across multiple countries – prompted speculation about who might be responsible amid ongoing concerns over Russia's suspected sabotage campaign in Europe, the war between the US and Iran and the global rise of AI-powered cyberattacks.US refrigerator hacksThe sabotage of European supermarket fridges was preceded by at least one similar incident in the United States.In August, refrigerators in at least half a dozen military commissaries went out of commission. Pentagon investigators are treating the malfunctions as a suspected cyberattack and are working with French officials to get to the bottom of what happened, Reuters reported last month.Reuters could not independently establish whether there was any link between the refrigeration incidents at US military bases in August, the hacking campaign in France and the more recent wave of refrigeration hacks that struck Europe.A person familiar with the matter said that the Pentagon considers Iran a suspect in the August commissary hacks but that the investigation is still in progress.Reuters could not establish how the military made its determination or whether it was also looking into other suspects. That the US military considers Iran a suspect in the commissary sabotage campaign was first reported last month by news website Nextgov.The Pentagon said on Monday that it is "aware of speculation regarding a potential cyber incident" but that military investigators were on the case and it could not offer further comment for security reasons.