Thailand's NSC Steps Up Monitoring of Critical Infrastructure After Europe's Fridge Attacks

Thailand's National Security Council (NSC) is stepping up monitoring of the country's critical digital systems and will ask private companies to review their defences, especially control systems, machinery and internet-connected devices, after hackers tampered with supermarket fridges and freezers in Europe. The NSC says no severe cyberattack has been reported in Thailand.

What the government ordered

Prime Minister Anutin Charnvirakul gave the order on 8 November, and NSC secretary-general General Chaipruak Doungprapat announced it at Government House on 9 November. Anutin told the council to work with the National Cyber Security Agency (NCSA) and the Ministry of Digital Economy and Society to tighten protection of national data and digital systems against hacking. The public will be told if the situation changes. Operators of critical infrastructure already work to the national cybersecurity preparedness plan, Thai PBS reports, and since being contacted they've added initial monitoring, checks and alerts on key systems.

Chaipruak said Europe showed that cyber threats now reach food, public health, energy and transport. The reports give no deadline for companies and no technical checklist.

Exporters were the cabinet's first concern

Anutin first raised the European hacks at a mobile cabinet meeting in Udon Thani on 3 November. He asked the Commerce Ministry to study insurance and tighter credit terms for exporters, in case foreign buyers claim goods spoiled in a hack and refuse to pay.

Supermarket fridges in France were hacked in October, and a second wave overnight into 2 November hit stores of Carrefour, Coop, ICA and SuperValu. The attacks also reached freezers at France's blood service. Singapore's Cyber Security Agency answered with an advisory telling firms to take OT control systems off the internet on 6 November.