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France has accused Iran of using a specialist cyber unit to launch virtual attacks on its supermarkets, causing fridges to turn up their heat dials across the country.
Commercial fridges and freezers lost power across France last month in incidents costing tens of millions of euros, according to some industry experts.
Approximately 700 supermarkets were impacted and 15 fires broke out as heat dials were turned up by hackers.
French foreign minister Jean-Noel Barrot said he had summoned Iran’s ambassador over what he called “unacceptable cyberattacks conducted by the Islamic Republic of Iran”.
“This is an attack of unprecedented scale and aggressiveness,” Mr Barrot said. “It is the first large-scale cyber attack aimed at sabotage on French soil, and it represents a major threat to our national interests and the security of the French people. That is why it will not go unanswered.”
The group are described as a “cyber unit” affiliated with the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps.
Shahid Kaveh loosely translates as shahid meaning martyr, and Kaveh is thought to be named after a revolutionary guard commander who died in the 1980s. The group of hackers are believed to be working with the Iranian government and military.
