The development of Artificial Intelligence has been a pivotal point in the evolution of technology. With repercussions - positive and negative - in all areas and in all aspects of our lives. The economy is changing, but it will change even more in the coming years.
The penetration of Artificial Intelligence in all sectors without exception will bring about cosmogonic changes, at the level of workers, businesses, sectors and subsectors of the economy, as well as in the entire spectrum of development and ultimately the state. The cyber attack on the refrigeration systems of hundreds of French supermarkets a few days ago, which turned freezers into "ovens", causing huge food losses, was a wake-up call for the dangers posed by the reckless development and spread of AI and the lack of control by the competent services, but also by the businesses themselves.
In this particular case, artificial intelligence was not used to "hit" but to identify weaknesses and gaps in the system and choose the most appropriate form of hit. According to official security reports, AI is now linked to 84% of ransomware attacks worldwide, while attacks on food and beverage companies increased by 62%.
How Artificial Intelligence is Used
According to data we collected from the internet, the use of artificial intelligence in these attacks is mainly divided into three main areas:
(1) Vulnerability detection. In the recent attack on French supermarkets, hackers exploited outdated software (firmware) in refrigeration systems. Using automated AI systems, they scan the entire internet in a matter of hours, identify which industrial controllers are connected to the internet, and instantly find which of them haven't been upgraded.
(2) AI-Generated Malicious Code Generation. About 80% of new ransomware software is now produced or optimized using Generative AI tools. Hackers use sophisticated models to write code that automatically changes form to escape traditional corporate protection countermeasures.
(3) Hyper-targeted phishing in the supply chain. For hackers to get into the network of a large chain, the easiest entry point is an employee. Using the "smart lie": With ChatGPT and similar tools, hackers create perfect, personalized emails (phishing). The AI studies the profile of the suppliers of a supermarket, learns how they talk and writes emails that look 100% real (e.g. invoices for alleged product deliveries), convincing employees to click on the malicious link that will infect the network.
The scary scenario
But what is the next stage, which scares the authorities? Autonomous attacks (Agentic AI). Cybersecurity defense agencies (such as the NSA and FBI) are warning that we are now in the era of autonomous AI attacks. It's not just a hacker using a chatbot, but autonomous AI Agents (digital agents) who can break into a factory or supermarket, navigate industrial systems (OT) on their own, and change operators' screens or temperatures, acting faster than a human defender can react.
It is recalled that, a few days ago, Anthropic revealed a false complaint to the police, in the context of new incidents where artificial intelligence exhibits characteristics out of control. Specifically, as revealed, an artificial intelligence model from Anthropic filed a false report of homicide on the Philadelphia police website, as part of a series of incidents revealed by the artificial intelligence company. This is the first known case in which an uncontrolled AI appears to have tried to pass on a false information to the authorities, despite instructions not to create accounts or file a complaint that can be considered destructive, while it was not explicitly prohibited from submitting applications.
Impact on the economy
Cyberattacks on functional technology (OT) systems, such as the recent one in the food supply chain, cause a chain economic shock that far outweighs the cost of digital recovery. How can the tangle of repercussions unravel and serious problems arise throughout the economy from such a cyberattack?
(1) Immediate Impact: (a) Huge Stock Loss. In the recent attack in France, the deactivation of refrigerators led to the immediate destruction of tons of perishable products (meat, dairy, frozen). This translates into millions of euros thrown in the trash in a matter of hours. (b) Lost profits. When the systems or the cash registers "die", the shops close. Every day of closure in a major chain means a loss of revenue of millions. (c) Restoration costs. Companies are forced to spend huge sums to replace infected equipment and software.
(2) Impact on the individual sectors: (a) Insurance Sector. Insurance companies are experiencing a crisis. Due to the frequency and severity of attacks, cybersecurity premiums have skyrocketed, with many companies now refusing to cover losses from "state-sponsored" attacks or infrastructure sabotage. (b) Logistics and Transport Sector. Paralysis of a critical link (e.g. a distribution center) causes a circulatory infarction. Trucks are stranded, delivery times are doubled, and transportation costs are rising, dragging down the entire market. (c) Technology and Cybersecurity Sector. There is a sharp increase in demand for specialized OT (Operational Technology) security consultants. Companies are forced to make extraordinary, costly upgrades to their "smart" industrial systems.
(3) Macroeconomic Impacts and Consumers: (a) Artificial Inflation. When supply drops sharply (due to damaged food or closed factories), prices on supermarket shelves immediately go up. Consumers are faced with empty shelves and more expensive products. (b) Crisis of confidence. Consumers lose trust in a chain if they fear for food safety and hygiene. The share of each company on the stock exchange receives a heavy blow.
(4) National Security and Government Spending. Governments are required to enforce stricter regulatory frameworks and fund national cyber defence strategies, as these attacks now threaten a country's social stability and food security.
The most well-known attacks
We may already be at the beginning of the evolution of Artificial Intelligence, but several cases have already been recorded in which it has been "involved" in cyberattacks. The most important officially recorded cyberattacks in recent years that are similar in philosophy, goal or impact (i.e. hit food infrastructure, distribution networks or control systems) are the following:
1. The attack on JBS Foods (2021) – Food supply. JBS Foods, the world's largest meat processor, has been attacked with ransomware. It forced the shutdown of factories in the US, Canada, and Australia, directly impacting prices and availability in supermarkets.
2. The Colonial Pipeline Cyberattack (2021) – Industrial Systems Control. The DarkSide group breached the systems of the largest fuel pipeline company in the US, forcing it to shut down its network for days, causing panic and shortages.
3. The attack on Coop supermarkets in Sweden (2021) – An indirect supply chain attack through the software company Kaseya "locked" the digital checkouts of the Swedish supermarket chain Coop. The chain was forced to temporarily close all 800 of its stores across the country because they could not operate.
4. Attempted poisoning at Oldsmar Water Plant (2021) – IoT / industrial control breach. Hackers gained access to the control system (SCADA) of a water treatment plant in Florida and tried to raise caustic soda levels to dangerous levels. It is the closest attack in terms of manipulating physical variables. Just as in Florida they changed the chemical composition of water, so in France hackers remotely changed the temperature settings (raising them to 50°C), turning a digital intrusion into an immediate physical threat to public health.
