The Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency (CISA), along with the FBI, HHS, USDA, and DOT, has released a fact sheet alerting organizations to ongoing cyber threats targeting industrial refrigeration and cold chain monitoring systems. These threats are particularly focused on vulnerabilities in unpatched or internet-accessible electronic temperature controllers and commercial refrigeration controllers.
Critical infrastructure sectors such as Healthcare and Public Health, Chemical, Food and Agriculture, and Transportation Systems are identified as affected by these cyber threats. If these vulnerabilities are successfully exploited, malicious actors could alter the temperature settings of refrigeration systems, potentially causing physical impacts such as fire hazards and loss of inventory.
CISA is actively tracking this threat in collaboration with government, industry, and international partners. They emphasize the importance of removing control system devices from the internet, changing default passwords, applying necessary patches, and replacing unsupported legacy devices to mitigate these risks.
The FBI highlights that industrial refrigeration and cold-chain monitoring systems are particularly attractive targets for cyber actors. Organizations relying on these systems are strongly urged to review the provided guidance and implement the recommended security measures to protect against potential threats.