Kremlin denies Russia role in Europe fridge cyberattacks

The Kremlin denied on November 5 that Russia was behind cyberattacks that hit supermarket fridges across Europe this week, calling the allegations against Moscow "absurd".

Grocery stores in at least nine European countries saw fridge temperatures rise, forcing retailers to discard hundreds of millions of dollars of food. The European Union warned of a deliberate attempt to disrupt the continent's food supplies.

Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said, according to Russian state media, that the accusations had no proof behind them. He said such accusations against Russia were becoming a persistent trend in European countries.

Supermarkets in Belgium, Estonia, Finland, Ireland, Italy, Luxembourg, the Netherlands, Portugal and Sweden reported refrigeration problems this week. France suffered a major attack last month.

Western countries have accused Russia of regular cyberattacks, a pattern they say has increased since Moscow launched its full-scale offensive against Ukraine in 2022. Russia consistently denies those accusations.