France stated that Iran was responsible for a large-scale cyberattack on freezers and refrigeration equipment in supermarkets. French Foreign Minister Jean-Noël Barrot described the incident as an act of "unprecedented scale and unprecedented aggression," reports UNN, citing The Guardian.
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Jean-Noël Barrot said that "pan-European sanctions" would be imposed against those responsible. He added that the attacks — during which the perpetrators gained control of digital thermostats and raised the temperature to above 50°C — constituted a "serious violation of national interests."
During a briefing on the sidelines of the G7 summit in Paris, he said: "Thanks to the considerable efforts of government authorities, I can confirm that the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) of the Islamic Republic of Iran is responsible for this attack."
According to him, Iran's ambassador was summoned to the ministry to "express the strongest possible protest against this extremely serious act."
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On October 11 and 12, cyberattacks hit a large number of supermarkets in France. In some of them, all stocks of perishable food had to be discarded.
Similar incidents were subsequently reported: last week, refrigeration equipment in supermarkets in other European countries was affected, and an attack was also carried out against the French blood bank.
Paris Prosecutor Laure Beccu said on Monday that investigators and government services had identified a "modus operandi" characteristic of the Iranian group "Shahid Kaveh" — a cyberwarfare unit linked to the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC).
According to her, the indicators included "the use of the Persian language and IP addresses leading to devices located in Iran."
Beccu said that her office had launched an investigation into the head of "Shahid Kaveh," his deputies, and "other individuals who will be identified." They are charged with "fraudulent attacks on an automated data-processing system committed as part of an organized criminal group, as well as causing damage that poses a danger to people."
She added that these offenses were "aggravated by the fact that they were committed in the interests of a foreign state — in this case, Iran." Jérôme Billois, a partner at Wavestone, a company specializing in cybersecurity and technology, noted that the Shahid Kaveh group had been operating since 2020 and was known to have carried out cyberattacks primarily against water-supply systems in the United States.
"Two countries are known to be involved in attacks of this type — Iran and Russia. Given that the recent cyberattacks on supermarkets and the blood bank in France specifically targeted refrigeration equipment, there are grounds to believe that Iran was directly involved in both cases," he said.
"They are currently attacking vulnerable equipment, but since this is a state-backed group with the necessary resources, determination, and time, we should be prepared for attacks on other systems — for example, water-supply facilities or power grids."
During the attack, which occurred last month, hackers remotely changed the temperature settings in thousands of freezers, refrigerators, and refrigerated display cases at 700 supermarkets and stores across France. In some cases, the temperature changed from -27°C to above +50°C.