Hackers defrost shop freezers – Swiss stores hit too

Freezers that heat instead of cool: in the first week of November, unknown attackers remotely manipulated the controls of refrigeration systems in several European countries. According to the Swiss daily Blick, defrost mode was deliberately switched on, among other things, heating the units to as much as 50°C. Tonnes of food had to be thrown away, and the damage is estimated at several million euros.

The Swiss cases

In Köniz, canton Bern, a butcher's freezers were tampered with. The meat spoiled and the shop had to close temporarily. Three branches of the village-shop chain Volg were also affected: individual settings of their refrigeration systems were changed, as Swiss broadcaster SRF first reported.

Migros, Coop and Lidl Switzerland told Blick they had no indications so far of successful attacks on their refrigeration units. According to the report, however, Coop had confirmed unsuccessful attempts.

Who is behind it remains unclear

Pro-Russian hacker groups have claimed responsibility for the attacks. They provided no evidence.

Reports to the federal government are rising

Since 1 April 2025, cyberattacks on critical infrastructure must be reported to the Federal Office for Cybersecurity (Bacs). The office registered 222 such attacks in 2025. From January to the end of October 2026 it had already received 389 reports.

What an expert advises

“Not every device should be hooked up to the internet,” Marc Ruef, a cybersecurity expert at the Zurich firm Scip AG, told Blick. Attackers often exploit default accounts whose passwords were never changed, or weak passwords. His advice: update devices regularly, and disconnect or replace old equipment.

According to the cooperative Réserve Suisse, there is no acute danger to national supplies: the compulsory stocks of food and animal feed do not depend on refrigeration.