Pentagon suspects mysterious freezer malfunctions were caused by hackers

The Pentagon thinks hackers may have broken into freezer systems at U.S. military bases in August, causing large amounts of food to spoil. At least six commissaries — stores where military members buy groceries — were affected in late August. Investigators believe someone may have used the internet to crank up the temperature inside the freezers overnight. By morning, piles of melted and rotting food were left behind.

One base, Fort Huachuca in Arizona, posted about the problem on Facebook on August 26. The post said the freezer 'went into defrost mode where it heated up all the food.' The base joked that people should 'trust us when we say it was spoiled.' But behind the humor, military officials were taking the situation very seriously.

The U.S. Army's Criminal Investigation Division said its Cyber Field Office was helping look into the problem. The Pentagon also confirmed that a unit of Cyber Command — the military's team for dealing with online threats — was working with law enforcement partners. So far, investigators have not said for certain that hackers are responsible. The possibility was first reported on August 28 by a blog called Signal and Silence.

American investigators are also talking with police in France, where a similar attack happened. In France, hackers took control of freezer systems in more than 350 stores. Frozen food aisles had to be cleared out because so much food was ruined. Some freezer units even caught fire because the temperature was turned up so high.

The cost of the French attack could reach tens of millions of euros, according to one store owner. Experts say the attack was surprisingly easy to carry out. A Danish company called Danfoss made the controllers used in many of the affected freezers. The company said many of those devices were old or running outdated software, which made them easier for hackers to break into.

Refrigeration — keeping food cold — is a key part of getting fresh food to people. Experts have warned for years that freezer systems connected to the internet could be targeted by hackers. Earlier this year, the Global Food Safety Initiative urged food safety and technology leaders to work together to protect cooling systems from cyberattacks. The group warned that 'a hacked cooling system is just as dangerous as a broken one.'

This is not the first time freezers have been hacked. In 2022, hackers broke into cold storage systems at supermarkets in Russia and Israel. In December 2025, federal prosecutors charged a Ukrainian woman with being part of a hacker group that knocked out refrigeration at a meatpacking plant in 2024, ruining more than 2,000 pounds of meat. These cases show that attacks on food storage are a growing threat.

Bill Moore is the head of an industrial cybersecurity company called Xona Systems. He said the main problem is that freezer controllers were originally built to be used by a technician in person — not connected to the internet. But more and more of these systems are now online, making them easier for hackers to reach. 'It can definitely disrupt the supply chain for food,' he said.