Cold storages in nine European countries have fallen victim to cyberattacks causing them to shut down or increase the heat, leading to millions of euros in damages across the continent.
The attacks were first noticed on Aug. 26 at Fort Huachuca, a military base near Arizona, where electrical appliances began malfunctioning. On Oct.12 over 700 locations across France were targeted. At 4 a.m. on Nov. 2 the operation rapidly spread across Europe into Belgium, Estonia, Finland, Germany, Ireland, Luxembourg, Netherlands, Sweden and Switzerland.
The cyber assaults have caused millions of euros in damages in the form of spoiled food. According to the New York Times, Belgian retail store owner Brecht Stinkens, 38, estimated a loss of up to €112,000.
In addition to grocery stores and food supply chains the French blood donor EFS, one of the largest blood suppliers in Europe, was affected at multiple locations. Reports from the Swiss Broadcaster SRF referred to cold storages being set to reach up to 110°C. The hackers are reported to target the operations and surveillance systems through internet connections, giving them access to entire networks of infrastructure undetected.
France has accused Iran of the cyber attack and has summoned the Iranian ambassador to Paris. Foreign minister Jean-Noel Barrot was quoted saying “it constitutes a major attack on the security of the French people.”
The foreign minister emphasized the “unprecedented scale and unprecedented aggression” of the offensive at a G7 summit press briefing, claiming, “thanks to the remarkable efforts of government agents, I am able to confirm that the Islamic Republic of Iran’s revolutionary guard are responsible for this attack.” On Nov. 9 French authorities issued multiple arrest warrants for individuals “affiliated with the electronic and cyber centre of the islamic revolutionary guard corps.”
In response Iran has denied the accusation, implying them to be ‘baseless’, according to reports by Al-Jazeera. The foreign ministry released a statement claiming the allegations to be “one-sided accusations against Iran regarding alleged cyber activity in France.”
Richard Jones, a professor in criminology working on cybersecurity has been quoted saying, “Food security is often taken for granted in western countries”, highlighting that “this is a wake-up call.”
At this time no responsibility has been taken for the cyber attacks on European infrastructure. The situation is developing as international talks and investigations are happening on the incidents.
