France has summoned Iran’s ambassador and warned it could hit back with cyber measures of its own after accusing Tehran of a cyberattack that disabled refrigerators in hundreds of French supermarkets.
Foreign Minister Jean-Noël Barrot said on Tuesday that Paris would push for European Union sanctions in response to what he called an “attack of unprecedented scale and aggression in our country”. He added that France could take further action that it would not disclose publicly.
“The summoning of the Iranian ambassador, announced by the minister yesterday, took place this morning,” the French foreign ministry said in a statement.
French officials said on Monday that Iran’s Revolutionary Guards were behind the attacks, which disrupted commercial refrigeration systems across France in early October. The attack on 11 October overrode the temperature controls on commercial fridges in hundreds of establishments, and one supermarket owner estimated the total cost across France could run into tens of millions of euros.
The attribution is single-sourced: it rests on French officials who spoke to Reuters on condition of anonymity, and Reuters said it could not establish exactly how France reached its determination. Iran’s mission to the United Nations did not respond to messages seeking comment on Monday, and Iran routinely denies carrying out malicious cyber operations.
“We will take whatever measures are necessary, including some that we will not discuss publicly, if we judge them proportionate and necessary to deter any new attacks and punish those responsible for this unacceptable aggression,” Barrot said, adding that France’s cyberdefence doctrine gave the authorities a range of options.
The supermarket hacks were among the most disruptive cyberattacks since the war with Iran began in February, a conflict marked by sporadic episodes of suspected digital sabotage. A second wave of refrigeration hacks this month hit more than 100 establishments across Europe, and the Pentagon considers Iran a suspect in similar hacks on US military commissaries in August, although that investigation is still in progress.
Relations between Paris and Tehran have been strained for years over Iran’s nuclear and ballistic missile programmes, its regional activities and the detention of several French nationals. Ties improved after those detainees were released and France distanced itself from the US war on Iran, but deteriorated again over the summer after Iran arrested and later expelled two French diplomats. France responded by expelling Iranian diplomats.
Sources: Reuters, “France summons Iran envoy over supermarket fridge hack, warns of response” (https://www.reuters.com/world/europe/france-summons-iran-envoy-over-supermarket-fridge-hack-warns-response-2026-11-10/) and “French officials suspect Iran is behind refrigerator hacks, sources say” (https://www.reuters.com/world/french-officials-suspect-iran-is-behind-refrigerator-hacks-sources-say-2026-11-09/)
