"Working Fine, Then Suddenly All Went Down at Once"... After France, Freezers at U.S. Military Bases Also "Fail"

Freezers Fail Simultaneously at U.S. Military Bases; "Hacking Suspected"
Cause Investigated in Cooperation with French Authorities

Military authorities have launched an investigation after freezers used to store food malfunctioned simultaneously at U.S. military facilities. A cyberattack targeting supermarket refrigeration and freezer systems in France earlier has also raised concerns about the security of food-storage facilities.

Freezers Fail Simultaneously at Six U.S. Military Facilities... Investigation Examines Possibility of Hacking

AFP-Yonhap News

According to Bloomberg News on October 29, freezers stopped working simultaneously at grocery stores at six U.S. military facilities in August.

At the time, Fort Huachuca, an Army base in Arizona, posted a photo of empty shelves on its official Facebook page and said, "All frozen food has spoiled." The U.S. Army Criminal Investigation Division (CID) then began investigating the circumstances of the incident with other law enforcement agencies.

Investigators are reportedly considering the possibility of hacking. They are said to be looking into the cause, drawing on a similar incident that recently occurred in France. The CID said it is also cooperating with French judicial authorities.

700 French Supermarkets Also Affected... Concerns Over Food Security

An empty refrigerator. AFP-Yonhap News

Earlier, hundreds of supermarkets in France were hit by a cyberattack in early October that crippled their refrigeration and freezer systems. Overnight on October 11-12, a cyberattack raised refrigerator temperatures to 50 degrees at several supermarkets across France.

The system in question was manufactured by Danish company Danfoss. The company said the affected equipment was "an older product that no longer receives security updates." This suggests the attack may have exploited basic security vulnerabilities in outdated equipment.

The French government estimated that around 700 supermarkets were affected by the attack. According to the Associated Press, French Economy Minister Roland Lescure told parliament on October 13 that 700 of the approximately 10,000 supermarkets in France had been affected.

He said France's food supply was not at risk, but added that the attack "struck at the heart of our food security. It is a wake-up call for everyone." The Paris prosecutor's office said its cybercrime unit was handling the investigation and was also assessing the extent of the damage, including food discarded and fires at stores.

Hacking groups commonly cite political motives or demand money by threatening to release stolen information. However, no group has yet claimed responsibility for this attack. With neither the perpetrators nor their motives identified, investigators are reportedly having difficulty determining what happened.

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.