France Targets Iran with Sanctions Plan After 700 Supermarkets Struck

Temperatures inside refrigeration units at approximately 700 French grocery stores spiked by as much as 50 degrees Celsius during a coordinated cyberattack that occurred overnight between October 11 and October 12. The sudden heat surge caused food spoilage and sparked fires, resulting in tens of millions of dollars in damage. Stores operated by Intermarché, E. Leclerc, Carrefour, Monoprix, and Coopérative U were among the retailers affected by the incident.

French authorities concluded on Monday that the intrusion originated with Shahid Kaveh, a unit affiliated with the Revolutionary Guard Corps. The foreign ministry characterized the event as the first cyber campaign on French soil designed exclusively for sabotage. It described the operation as unprecedented in its scale and aggressiveness. The ministry stated that the destructive activity violated international law and represented a continuing threat to critical infrastructure.

Foreign Minister Jean-Noël Barrot told Franceinfo on Tuesday that the government is not ruling anything out. He indicated that the state is weighing travel restrictions and asset freezes to discourage further malicious activity. Iran's ambassador was summoned to the ministry that morning. The government plans to propose European sanctions against specific Iranian individuals and entities involved in the breach.

Investigators determined that attackers accessed the refrigeration controllers through web interfaces provided by Danfoss and Dixell. They initiated unlimited defrost cycles and disabled safety alerts from sensors that monitor temperature thresholds. Paris chief prosecutor Laure Beccuau said her office is seeking international arrest warrants. Evidence of Farsi language usage and IP addresses linked to devices in Iran supported the conclusion that the operation served the interests of that foreign power.

Similar disruptions were reported across Europe in November. Stores in Belgium, Luxembourg, the Netherlands, Finland, Ireland, and Sweden reported losses. The French Blood Establishment, or EFS, said blood banks were hit by cybersecurity attacks on November 2. Temperature and defrost settings in cold storage units holding blood products were raised excessively, affecting samples destined for healthcare facilities and biobanks.

Simon Edwards, chief executive of cybersecurity testing laboratory SE Labs, suggested the disruptions serve as a warning to European governments. He noted that the activity exposed infrastructure vulnerabilities. Edwards questioned why the refrigerators were accessible over the internet without passwords, identifying poor basic cybersecurity practices as a key enabling factor.

France previously attributed attacks on Charlie Hebdo in 2023 and the Paris Olympics in 2024 to actors based in Iran. Those incidents led to sanctions against the Iranian private company Emennet Pasargad in March 2026. A separate series of hoax bomb threats has also unsettled European leaders, forcing dozens of passenger flights to make emergency landings.