Pentagon treating military base freezer malfunctions as suspected cyberattack, officials say - Military Times

The Pentagon is treating the spate of mysterious freezer malfunctions that spoiled food at military bases across the United States in August as a suspected hack, according to four officials familiar with the matter. One official revealed that military investigators have been in contact with their French counterparts regarding a similar cyberattack on commercial freezers that disrupted supermarkets in France earlier this month.

Reuters was unable to determine the current status of the Pentagon's investigation or whether any conclusions have been reached about the cause or potential perpetrators. When questioned about the probe, the Pentagon stated that a unit of Cyber Command — the military's cyber force — was 'working in close coordination with interagency and law enforcement partners' without providing further details.

The US Department of the Army Criminal Investigation Division confirmed its Cyber Field Office's involvement in the investigation and disclosed collaboration with French law enforcement to better understand 'the refrigeration outages in Europe.'

US freezer incidents

The late August malfunctions in the United States affected at least six commissaries — on-base stores where military personnel purchase food — according to a Reuters review of military bases' Facebook posts and website updates. In at least one case, the cooling units' temperatures were deliberately increased overnight, resulting in significant food spoilage.

Fort Huachuca's Arizona Facebook account explained on August 26 that its freezer 'went into defrost mode where it heated up all the food. Trust us when we say it was "spoiled."' The Signal and Silence blog first reported these rogue freezer behaviors and potential cybersabotage on August 28.

French cyberattack

If confirmed as a cyberattack, the refrigerator malfunctions would demonstrate the vulnerability of critical infrastructure — particularly cold storage — to hackers. The French cyberattack overrode temperature controls in more than 350 commercial cooling units, causing dramatic scenes as supermarket frozen food aisles were cleared of spoiled merchandise.

Similar to the US incidents, the French hack involved increasing temperatures rather than simply disabling the units. Some French refrigeration units became so hot they caught fire. A supermarket owner estimated the French attack's total costs could reach tens of millions of euros nationwide.

The Danish firm Danfoss, whose controllers powered many affected units, noted that many devices were obsolete or running outdated firmware, potentially making them easy targets for hackers. Reuters could not confirm if Danfoss or other brands were used at the US bases.

Critical infrastructure concerns

Refrigeration plays a vital role in food distribution, and the sabotage of cold storage facilities via the internet has long been considered a nightmare scenario alongside attacks on electricity or water plants. Earlier this year, the Global Food Safety Initiative called for collaboration between food safety professionals and IT leaders to ensure 'robust cybersecurity' for refrigeration technology.

Hackers have previously targeted refrigeration systems in the US and internationally. Danfoss reported that in 2022, hackers targeted supermarkets in Russia and Israel using obsolete versions of its cold storage controllers. Last December, federal prosecutors in Los Angeles accused a Ukrainian woman of being part of a hacker group that disabled refrigeration at a meatpacking facility in 2024, ruining over 2,000 pounds of meat.

Bill Moore explained that controllers originally designed as isolated interfaces for in-person technicians are increasingly being connected to the internet, creating vulnerabilities. While not unique to cooling systems, these vulnerabilities could have particularly severe consequences for food supply chains.