Italy says cyberattack on supermarket fridges had limited impact

Italy's government said on Tuesday the domestic impact of a cyberattack that hit supermarket refrigeration systems across Europe had been extremely limited and posed no public health risk from thawing food products.

* A hacking attack on Monday hit fridges and freezers from Sweden to Belgium, forcing stores to throw away food in an incident that echoed a similar attack in France last month

* Police have launched an investigation to shed light on cyberattacks that affected supermarkets in the southern region of Sicily and in the northern Emilia-Romagna region, Ansa news agency reported

* Alfredo Mantovano, a senior undersecretary in the government of Giorgia Meloni, chaired a meeting on the issue with the intelligence services and the cybersecurity agency

* Initial assessments indicated that only a small number of commercial outlets had been affected in Italy, mostly those still relying on outdated security systems

* The vast majority of the food distribution chain was equipped with up-to-date protection systems capable of repelling malicious intrusions, the government said