The Pentagon is investigating a series of suspected cyber attacks that disrupted food supplies at 14 U.S. military bases. The incidents, which targeted refrigerators and freezers at on-base commissaries, are believed to have been caused by hackers exploiting a global loophole in refrigeration control systems.
In late August, six commissaries experienced disruptions when their freezer temperatures were raised overnight, leading to thawed and leaking stock. Fort Huachuca in Arizona publicly announced on Facebook that its commissary freezer had entered a defrost mode, heating all the food inside. The Defense Commissary Agency has been working to move affected stock to other temperature-controlled locations to minimize losses.
The Pentagon's Cyber Command is collaborating with interagency partners, law enforcement, and U.S. allies in Europe on the investigation. The U.S. Army's Criminal Investigation Command (CID) Cyber Field Office has joined the inquiry and is in communication with French police regarding similar outages.
These events echo a spate of overnight sabotage attacks that have affected hundreds of grocery stores across Europe in recent weeks. In France, approximately 700 supermarkets lost refrigeration, and similar incidents have been reported in Belgium, Ireland, Estonia, the Netherlands, Luxembourg, Sweden, and Finland. French officials noted that while there was no risk to national food supplies, the attacks impacted the country's food security.
Some affected stores in Sweden were reportedly connected to external refrigeration control systems supplied by Danish manufacturer Danfoss, the same supplier targeted in France. These particular stores utilized a 4G mobile connection, making them potentially more vulnerable than those with upgraded 5G systems. Investigators have not yet identified any suspects in connection with either the U.S. or European incidents.