2 months after commissary freezer outages, Pentagon still investigating, quiet on the cause

Experts in cybersecurity said that commissaries and food supply chains have increasingly become a valuable target for adversaries. Experts in cybersecurity said that grocery stores and food supply chains have increasingly become a valuable target for adversaries. (Fort Huachuca Facebook page) By ROSE L. THAYER and JENNIFER H. SVAN STARS AND STRIPES In the two months since a handful of commissary stores across the U.S. experienced near simultaneous refrigeration outages, European grocers have twice announced cyberattacks on freezers, leading to further speculation about what could have happened at the commissaries. Defense Department and military investigative agencies have confirmed that its cyber experts are investigating what has happened overseas. However, officials have stopped short of confirming whether anything nefarious took place in late August when at least six military bases or stores shared information about refrigeration outages affecting sales of meat, dairy, produce and frozen foods.

Unverified sources suggested that up to a dozen commissary stores were affected, but the Pentagon — citing the ongoing investigation — declined to answer any questions about the situation, including how many stores lost refrigeration and the cost of the food that was lost. Four commissary stores in Germany and England experienced refrigeration outages in late September, but the Defense Commissary Agency said that the incident was unrelated to what happened in the U.S. The