Food suppliers in the United Kingdom have been targeted by cyber-attacks following a series of incidents that saw hackers manipulate refrigeration systems across Europe. The National Cyber Security Centre (NCSC) confirmed it is working with affected companies, though it stated the national impact remains minimal.
Collateral Damage in the Meat Industry
The British Association of Independent Meat Suppliers reported that several of its more than 300 members were affected. These firms became collateral damage in the broader campaign against retail refrigeration infrastructure. The association confirmed that no meat was lost during the hacks, but the incidents served as a stark reminder that businesses at any point in the supply chain can be seen as targets.
One meat supply company reported that its cold units rose to temperatures of up to 100C. Two other firms noted that their units had begun to defrost. The industry body emphasized that the affected units were empty at the time, preventing any spoilage of stock.
Alex Pearce, managing director of Langridge Organic, described how hackers altered the parameters on a number of units. The attackers set the systems to defrost for more than four hours at 150C. Pearce and his staff intervened before any stock could be damaged. He noted that the simple solution was to unplug the systems from the internet, highlighting how easy it was for intruders to gain access.
Pearce confirmed that Langridge uses the same fridge control system, developed by a US software company called Copeland, that was involved in the French supermarket incidents. The Grocer magazine first reported the Langridge incident. Copeland has been contacted for comment.
NCSC Warns of Foothills of a Wider Threat
Paul Chichester, the NCSC director of operations, spoke at the launch of the agency’s annual review on Tuesday. He stated that the agency is aware of the incidents in the UK and is working with the affected organizations. He added that they will keep monitoring the situation and that the impact is minimal at the moment.
Richard Horne, the NCSC chief executive, described the fridge attacks as the foothills of an enlarged cyberthreat. He warned that companies and the public face growing risks as AI systems highlight flaws in IT networks that owners were not aware of or had neglected to patch. Horne noted that there are so many vulnerabilities out there that they could be described as waiting to be exploited.
The agency’s chief technology officer, Ollie Whitehouse, said that everyday domestic devices connected to the internet would be susceptible to hackers in certain situations. He argued that manufacturers need to be encouraged to make their technology safer, and consumers need to accept paying more for safer equipment.
Links to Russian-Linked Operations
Cybersecurity experts reported that attacks on dummy Danfoss fridge controls displayed characteristics similar to malicious operations linked to Russia. Xavier Bellekens, chief executive of the cyberdefence firm Lupovis, said his company recorded 256 attempted attacks from 91 different sources between 20 October and 30 October. The firm had set up online honeypot traps that are indistinguishable to attackers from real Danfoss fridge controllers.
The attackers attempting to take over the dummy controls remained anonymous. Most of the authentication attempts used the manufacturer’s publicly documented factory-default username and password credentials. Bellekens noted that the attackers also used bulletproof hosting, which involves internet service providers that are particularly tolerant of malicious activity.
Bellekens said the overlap between infrastructure involved in the recent probing activity and infrastructure previously associated with Russian-linked malicious operations was notable. He added that while they are not able to pinpoint a group yet, the number of actors that fit this bill is relatively small.
Retailers in Belgium, Estonia, Finland, Ireland, Luxembourg, the Netherlands, and Sweden reported problems with their refrigeration systems on Monday. Some temperatures rose to as high as 50C. Several companies confirmed they had been hacked. Similar incidents were reported in France last month, where the cyber-attack involved legacy technology connected to the internet with default passwords.
Chichester said the NCSC was working with organizations to identify loopholes in their technology and close them before hackers exploited them. He stated that the agency was not able to comment on who might have carried out the attacks, but that they were not AI-enabled and had used vulnerabilities that had been out there for a long period of time.
Source: The Guardian
