Pro-Russian hackers target Italian FM Tajani; EU supermarkets hit in linked cyber wave

Pro-Russian hackers leaked Italian Foreign Minister Antonio Tajani's personal and family data onto the dark web in an apparent bid to intimidate Rome over its military support for Ukraine, with Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni attributing the operation directly to pro-Russian groups.

Italian cybersecurity authorities discovered the breach during routine dark web surveillance, confirming that threat actors were also attempting to procure additional private records relating to Tajani's household. Tajani pledged that Italian state institutions would not yield to blackmail and announced plans to intensify national cybersecurity defences.

Ukraine's Foreign Minister Andrii Sybiha offered solidarity and said Kyiv stood ready to share its operational expertise with Italian and European cybersecurity specialists. Sybiha backed Tajani's proposal to place escalating cyber threats on the agenda of the upcoming G7 foreign ministers' meeting in Paris, confirming he would personally attend.

The attack on Tajani coincides with a broader wave of cyber intrusions against European commercial infrastructure. More than 100 grocery retail stores were disrupted on Monday, 2 November, when hackers remotely accessed internet-connected cooling controllers, forcing freezer temperatures up to 50 degrees Celsius and spoiling perishable meat, produce and dairy products. The affected retailers were in Belgium, Estonia, Ireland, Luxembourg, Sweden and the Netherlands. In Sweden, ICA franchises and Coop stores reported extensive inventory loss; Irish wholesaler Musgrave disposed of frozen goods across 13 retail outlets.

The incidents followed an October cyber incident in France that compromised cooling systems at approximately 700 supermarkets, igniting localised electrical fires. EU Agriculture Commissioner Christophe Hansen described the refrigeration breaches as a deliberate attempt to compromise regional food supply chains. Investigators noted the absence of financial ransom demands as a strong indicator of state-aligned hybrid sabotage.