CYBER-ATTACK HITS SUPERMARKET FRIDGES ACROSS EUROPE AND UK

A cyber-attack caused supermarket fridge and freezer temperatures to spike across Europe on Monday, with businesses in the UK's food supply chain among those affected. The National Cyber Security Centre said it was aware of a couple of instances in which vulnerable technology had been exploited in the UK. Dr Richard Horne, the NCSC's chief executive, told BBC Radio 4's Today programme that the organisation had worked through the night to alert potentially affected businesses. He said it was too early to say who was behind the attack. "It's not just supermarkets, it's through the whole food supply chain," Horne said.

The British Association of Independent Meat Suppliers said some of its more than 300 members had become what it called "collateral" in the hacks. Two members saw their fridges begin to defrost, while another saw cold units rise to temperatures of up to 100C, the association said. AIMS spokesman Tony Goodger said the affected units were empty at the time, so no produce was lost. Supermarkets in Ireland, Sweden, Estonia and Belgium also reported fridges and freezers being pushed to higher temperatures on Monday, with Swedish grocers ICA and Coop, and an Ikea store, among those affected.

The attack follows incidents that hit supermarkets and food suppliers across France in early October, spoiling food estimated to be worth millions of euros. Horne said many organisations had extended systems beyond their intended lifespan or failed to keep them updated. "That technology base we rely on as a society has not been invested in to the extent it needs to be," he said. He added that such gaps left vulnerabilities that artificial intelligence could help adversaries find and exploit with ease.