When Cyber Attacks Get Physical: Key Lessons For Retailers

What happens when a cyber-attack doesn't take down your website or lock employees out of their laptops, but instead turns up the temperature of your fridges or changes your air conditioning settings?

Recent cyber-attacks targeting supermarket refrigeration systems across Europe expose a growing blind spot for retailers and offer a reminder that cyber risk doesn't stop at the IT network. As stores, warehouses and supply chains become increasingly connected, operational technology (OT) and Internet of Things (IoT) devices are creating new routes through which hackers can cause significant business disruption.

For UK retailers, the lesson extends well beyond fridges. The incidents are an opportunity to reassess how OT and IoT risks are identified, governed, and managed across complex store estates and supply chains, particularly where equipment is maintained or remotely accessed by third-party suppliers.