Key facts
- Supermarket refrigerators in France were heated to as much as 50 degrees on October 11–12; large quantities of spoiled products were destroyed.
- French Foreign Minister Jean-Noel Barrot blamed Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps for the attack on November 9.
- A November 10 statement from the French ministry identified a unit called “Shahid Kaveh”.
- Iran’s Foreign Ministry denied the accusation; France said it reserved the right to take measures it considered necessary and proportionate.
Who does France blame for the attack?
France blames Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps for the attack. Following Foreign Minister Jean-Noel Barrot’s remarks on November 9, a ministry statement dated November 10 identified “Shahid Kaveh”, a unit of the Revolutionary Guards’ Electronic Warfare and Cyber Defence Organisation. Iran rejected the accusation through both its Foreign Ministry and Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi.
France’s Ministry for Europe and Foreign Affairs described the group as an offensive cyber unit in a statement posted on X. This attribution represents the French government’s allegation; Tehran denies involvement in the attack.
The impact in supermarkets: Spoiled food and destroyed stock
The incidents described in the report were not confined to France. Similar security problems were reported at supermarkets in the Netherlands on the same dates. In the week preceding the report, refrigerators and freezers at some supermarkets in Sweden, Estonia, Belgium, Luxembourg, the Netherlands and Ireland suddenly warmed up, spoiling large quantities of products. A possible cyberattack was being considered in these latest incidents; they were not reported as confirmed attacks.
Tehran’s denial and Paris’s pledge to respond
Iran’s Foreign Ministry categorically rejected France’s accusations that Iran had been involved in cyber activities and condemned its policy of making accusations. In a statement on X, Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi also accused the French government of blaming others for its own failures.
Araghchi also referred to Gaza in his response. Accusing France of supporting massacres in Gaza, the Iranian minister maintained that Iran did not exercise its power by bombing schools and hospitals. These remarks were political accusations made by Araghchi against France.
Barrot described the incident as the first large-scale cyberattack intended to cause sabotage on French soil and said it would not go unanswered. The French ministry’s November 10 statement reiterated that position: Paris said it reserved the right to take measures it considered necessary and proportionate, whether publicly disclosed or not.
Frequently asked questions
When did the attack on supermarket refrigerators in France take place?
The attack took place on October 11–12. Supermarket refrigerators were heated to as much as 50 degrees, and large quantities of spoiled products were destroyed.
How did Iran respond to France’s accusation?
Iran’s Foreign Ministry rejected the accusation as unfounded and biased. Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi also accused the French government of blaming others for its failures.