Swedish supermarkets ICA and Coop suspect cyberattack after refrigeration systems fail
Refrigerators and freezers at multiple Swedish supermarkets, including ICA and Coop, malfunctioned overnight, causing temperatures to rise as high as 55°C and leading to widespread food spoilage. While a cyberattack is suspected, neither company has confirmed the cause. Similar incidents have been reported in Belgium, though no connection between the events has been established.
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What happened in Sweden
On the morning of the incident, staff at several ICA and Coop stores in Sweden discovered refrigerators and freezers had heated to temperatures between 50°C and 55°C. The ICA Kvantum store in Sjöbo, southern Sweden, was among the locations affected, with reports indicating hackers may have breached its cooling systems and set temperatures to 50°C. The store closed temporarily before reopening later in the day.
ICA confirmed that a limited number of its stores experienced overnight disruptions but did not confirm whether hackers were responsible. Coop reported similar issues at six of its stores in central Sweden. Other locations, including an ICA Nära store in Böda on the island of Öland, also faced failures, with one freezer displaying 55°C and causing water leakage across the floor.
The malfunctions forced stores to discard chilled and frozen products. The incidents were reported across multiple regions, including Skåne and Öland.
Incidents reported in Belgium and beyond
In Belgium, supermarket operators Delhaize and Carrefour Belgium experienced similar disruptions. Delhaize confirmed an IT incident had affected refrigeration systems in at least 40 of its stores. Carrefour Belgium reported problems at 15 locations.
The Next Web also noted earlier incidents, including a confirmed cyberattack on refrigeration systems at hundreds of supermarkets in France in October. Temperatures in those cases were raised to around 50°C, resulting in food waste. Additionally, the Pentagon is investigating whether hackers caused refrigeration failures at military base stores in the US in August.
No connection has been established between the incidents in Sweden, Belgium, France, and the US.
What this means
Lazyfounder analysis — our interpretation, not reported fact.
For founders and operators in retail, food safety, or supply chain technology, this incident highlights the vulnerability of connected infrastructure. Supermarkets rely on digital systems to manage refrigeration, and a targeted attack—or even a technical failure—can disrupt operations, lead to financial losses from spoiled inventory, and erode customer trust.
The lack of confirmation around the cause in Sweden leaves open questions about whether this was a coordinated attack, a software flaw, or a hardware malfunction. If a cyberattack is confirmed, it would underscore the need for robust IT security measures in even the most seemingly mundane parts of retail operations. Founders building solutions for food safety, IoT security, or supermarket automation may find new urgency in addressing these risks.
Related on Lazyfounder
Sources
- The Next Web · 2026-11-02
Freezers at Swedish supermarkets heat up overnight, store blames hackers
This story is an original summary drafted with AI by Lazyfounder from the reporting listed above and checked by automated validation. Facts are attributed to their original publishers; sections marked as analysis are Lazyfounder's. Where a source is in another language, facts were machine-translated and quotations are reported, not reproduced. Read the original coverage via the links, and see our AI policy and corrections policy.
About the author
Editor, Lazyfounder
Tarun Mottlia edits LazyFounders, covering Indian startups, funding rounds, AI and product launches. Every story on the site is AI-assisted and checked against its cited sources before publication.
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