Hackers took advantage of a software vulnerability, proving again that any connected appliance on the internet can be a target.

Hundreds of supermarkets in France were the subject of a coordinated hack early Monday morning that turned up the heat on fridges and freezers, causing food to spoil and, in some cases, fires to break out.

According to reports from AFP, three major grocery chains in the country — E. Leclerc, Intermarche and Cooperative U — reported that hackers forced connected fridges and freezers at hundreds of stores to go into defrost mode for several hours, raising their temperatures to 50 degrees Celsius. Paris authorities told the news agency that other grocery chains were also hit.

While it’s unclear who is responsible for the attacks or the exact exploit chain used, the hackers targeted software on two Danfoss system controllers. The company told the industry publication Cooling Post that the affected systems, AK-SM800 and AK-SC355, were running outdated firmware. “We are working with affected customers to implement appropriate mitigation measures, including firmware updates where available, stronger network protections and removing direct internet exposure where applicable,” Danfoss told Cooling Post.

On a web page for its AK-SM800 controllers, Danfoss says the company “takes security seriously” and that “new measures are being implemented” to improve security.

A representative for Danfoss did not immediately return a request for comment.

The incidents are alarming for several reasons. In addition to proving yet again that network-connected devices, especially older ones, can be targets of attack, the French supermarket attack highlights vulnerabilities in global food supplies that can be quickly and dangerously exploited.

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