Polish Chief Sanitary Inspector: cyberattacks on refrigeration controllers in supermarkets, slaughterhouses and meat distribution push temperatures to 40–50 °C — temperature checks with independent measuring devices recommended
On 3 November 2026 Poland’s Chief Sanitary Inspector warned of cyberattacks on cold chain infrastructure in the food industry: attackers take remote control of refrigeration controllers, switch the units to defrost mode or raise the temperature to 40–50 °C, and frozen food, meat and dairy products then have to be destroyed for sanitary and hygiene reasons. A second wave of attacks began on 2 November and hit supermarkets in at least 10 European countries, including Poland; the Inspector recommends regular physical temperature checks with independent measuring devices and comparing the results with the readings of electronic systems.
- According to the Inspector, the first wave of attacks took place in mid-October in France and led to the destruction of food worth many millions of euros. The second, from 2 November, hit supermarkets in at least 10 countries, including Belgium, Estonia, Finland, Ireland, Italy, Luxembourg, the Netherlands, Portugal, Germany, Sweden, the United Kingdom and Poland — both large retail chains and smaller businesses such as slaughterhouses and meat distribution plants. EU Agriculture Commissioner Christophe Hansen said that Europe’s food security is not at risk, but the wave of attacks raises concerns about the resilience of the supply chain; household refrigerators were not affected.
- The attackers gain remote access to refrigeration controllers and change their configuration. The Inspector warns that such interference may alter the set temperature parameters, disrupt the operation of equipment or cause electronic monitoring systems to display incorrect temperatures — so businesses should not rely solely on automatic equipment readings and electronic temperature monitoring systems.
- Recommendations for shops, wholesalers and other places where food is sold or stored: regularly check and record temperatures physically in refrigerators, cold rooms, freezers and other freezing equipment using independent measuring devices; compare the readings of electronic systems with actual measurements; watch for unusual temperature changes, unjustified changes to settings and missing or malfunctioning alarms; check more often when irregularities are found; respond immediately to any uncontrolled temperature rise and assess the safety of stored food before releasing it for further sale.
- The Inspector also recommends reviewing refrigeration systems for use of the public Internet and for the security of controllers and communication modules and, following CERT Polska, checking the credentials in use, especially whether default passwords have been changed, and considering a VPN for remote access. Suspicious incidents should be reported to the competent authorities, including the State Sanitary Inspection, and businesses should review their procedures for keeping food under proper refrigeration and their crisis procedures; consumers are asked to check products for signs of thawing or refreezing (clumping, excess ice) and not to buy them if in doubt.