Kremlin spokesperson Dmitry Peskov denied on Thursday, November 5, 2026, that Russia was involved in cyberattacks on supermarket refrigerators across Europe, calling the allegations "absurd" and "unfounded" in comments reported by Russian media. Refrigerators in multiple European countries were hacked over the past few weeks, forcing retailers to discard thawing food, and French blood banks were also hit, though their collection service said supplies were unaffected.
Who's Involved
Dmitry Peskov
denied Russian involvement in the attacks
Lupovis
cybersecurity firm whose CEO cited Russian clues
Sekoia
cyber defense firm noting Iranian-aligned targeting record
Kremlin
Kremlin spokesperson's office denying the allegations
↳ Why This Matters
Retailers in several European countries discarded thawing fresh and frozen food after refrigerators were hacked, and French blood banks were also hit, though their collection service said supplies were unaffected. No affected country's cybersecurity authority has publicly attributed the attacks, leaving the culprit unidentified.
Key facts
Kremlin spokesperson Dmitry Peskov called allegations of Russian involvement "absurd" and "unfounded," per Russian media reports.
Refrigerators in supermarkets across multiple European countries were hacked over the past few weeks, forcing food to be thrown away.
French blood banks were also hit, but the blood collection service said supplies were not affected.
Pro-Russian hacker groups claimed the attacks on Wednesday and quickly deleted the claims, the BBC reported.
Lupovis CEO Xavier Bellekens said clues pointed to a Russian state-sponsored actor; Sekoia noted Iranian-aligned actors' record of targeting supermarkets.
A spokesperson for the Kremlin denied on Thursday that Russia had any involvement in the cyberattacks affecting supermarket refrigerators across Europe, calling the allegations "absurd." Dmitry Peskov said accusations of Russian involvement are "unfounded," according to reports in Russian media, and that such allegations are "becoming a persistent trend in European countries."
Supermarket refrigerators have been hacked in multiple European countries over the past few weeks, forcing retailers to throw away thawing fresh and frozen food. The attacks also hit French blood banks, though the country's blood collection service said its supplies were not affected.
Pro-Russian hacker groups claimed the attacks on Wednesday, but those groups quickly deleted the claims, according to the BBC. Attributing a cyberattack to a specific actor definitively is notoriously difficult, and cybersecurity authorities in the affected countries have not publicly attributed the attacks.
Some cybersecurity experts say Russia is one of the main suspects. Xavier Bellekens, CEO of cybersecurity firm Lupovis, told POLITICO that clues pointed to "a Russian state-sponsored threat actor." A report from cyber defense firm Sekoia noted that "Iranian-aligned actors have an established record" of targeting supermarkets, for instance in the U.S. and Israel.
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How It Developed
Supermarket refrigerators were hacked in multiple European countries over the past few weeks, forcing retailers to throw away thawing fresh and frozen food.
The attacks also hit French blood banks, though the country's blood collection service said its supplies were not affected.
Pro-Russian hacker groups claimed the attacks on Wednesday and quickly deleted the claims, according to the BBC.
Kremlin spokesperson Dmitry Peskov denied on Thursday that Russia had any involvement, calling the allegations "absurd" and "unfounded."
