Your controller can't be its own witness.
In most cold rooms, the device that controls the temperature is also the only device that reports it. If that one device is wrong, misconfigured or taken over, nobody is told. An EDGE logger is a second, separate witness: its own sensor, its own alarm, and no way to control your equipment.
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Freezers were turned into heaters, overnight
- October 2026, France: refrigeration controllers at hundreds of supermarkets were taken over at night. The attackers held the defrost heaters on, some freezers reached about 50 °C (122 °F), and stock had to be thrown out. Some fires were reported.
- 1 and 2 November 2026: stores in several more European countries reported the same kind of failure.
- 5 November 2026: the FBI and four other US agencies issued a joint alert about attacks on internet-connected temperature controllers, naming cold storage and healthcare among the sectors at risk.
As of 9 November 2026 we have seen no public report of an attack of this kind in Canada. The equipment involved is common worldwide. Sources are listed at the bottom of this page.
One device was doing both jobs
A refrigeration controller runs the compressor, the fans and the defrost. In most stores it is also the thermometer, the alarm and the record. That works until the controller itself is the problem:
- a setting is changed, by mistake or on purpose;
- a sensor on the controller drifts or fails;
- the controller is taken over from outside.
In each case the device that would raise the alarm is the same device that is wrong.
The official advice is to fix passwords, firmware and network access. Do all of it. Then add a witness that does not depend on the controller.
Three tests for an independent witness
| Test | What to ask | EDGE |
|---|---|---|
| Its own sensor | Does it measure the temperature itself, or read it from the controller? | Its own stainless-steel probes inside the box. EDGE Thermo takes two probes, so one logger can watch two fridges or freezers. |
| Its own alarm path | If the controller and the store network were both down, would the alarm still reach a person? | Display and buzzer at the equipment, plus alerts from LF Cloud by call, text, email and push. The cellular model has a built-in eSIM and does not use your network at all. |
| No control | Can it change a setpoint, start a defrost or switch anything? | No. EDGE measures, records and alarms. It has no connection to your refrigeration controls. |
A second set of eyes on every fridge and freezer
- Put the probe in the box. EDGE Thermo probes read from -55 °C to +125 °C (-67 °F to +257 °F), with up to 16.5 m (54 ft) of probe run.
- Set your limits. Alarms go out as soon as a reading crosses its limit. An Alarm Delay of 15 minutes to 24 hours keeps door openings and normal defrosts from waking anyone up.
- Choose who is told. Alarm escalation: level 1 at once, level 2 after 30 minutes if nobody has acknowledged, then everyone at the next reminder.
- Keep the record. HACCP-ready records for every unit at every site, on one dashboard. LF Cloud servers are only in Canada (Montreal).
Email and push alerts are free. SMS and call alarms use prepaid credit.
LoggerFlex is Canada's most advanced datalogger and alarm-system maker, with 50,000+ devices deployed. EDGE loggers are designed and built in Canada.
Cellular for full separation, WiFi where the network is yours
| Item | EDGE Cellular | EDGE WiFi |
|---|---|---|
| Connection | Built-in eSIM. No gateway. Not on your store network. | Your WiFi. No gateway. |
| Best for | Sites that want the monitoring path fully separate from store IT, sites without WiFi, and alerts during a power cut. | Sites with reliable WiFi on a network you control. |
| Power | USB-C power with 4 AA batteries as backup. | USB-C power with 4 AA batteries as backup. |
| On batteries only | Up to 1 year at 10-minute recording and 24-hour sync. A maximum, not a promise. | Up to 2 years at 10-minute recording and 24-hour sync. A maximum, not a promise. |
During a power cut the logger keeps working on its batteries. A WiFi model needs a powered router to send alerts, so we recommend cellular where alerts during outages matter. On USB-C power, EDGE reports a power cut at its next recording.
Cellular models are in limited supply. The next production run is expected mid-January, subject to first-article inspection.
Straight answers: what this is not
- It does not secure your controller. Follow your controller maker's guidance and the agencies' advice: change default passwords, update firmware, take controllers off the public internet.
- It does not stop an attack. It makes sure a person finds out while there is still time to act.
- It is a connected device too. No connected device should be called unhackable, and we do not call ours that. The point is separation: a logger that only measures, on its own path, cannot be used to heat your freezer, and an attacker would have to beat two unrelated systems on the same night to do damage unseen.
For refrigeration contractors and distributors
Your customers are asking this week. Add an independent logger to every controller service call and every new install. Group View shows all your customers' sites on one screen, and the Service & Maintenance role lets your technicians acknowledge alarms and file service reports.
Frequently asked questions
Does EDGE connect to my refrigeration controller?
No. EDGE has its own probes and no link to the controller. It measures, records and alarms; it cannot change a setpoint, start a defrost or switch anything.
We already have alarms on the controller. Why add another?
Because those alarms come from the device being checked. An independent logger tells you when the controller and the real temperature disagree.
Do I need a gateway or an IT project?
No. EDGE connects by WiFi or by its built-in cellular eSIM, with no gateway.
Is there a yearly fee?
Every device includes its first year of Premium. WiFi models don't need a paid plan: after the first year, alarms keep working on the free Standard tier. Email and push alerts are free; SMS and call alarms use prepaid credit.
Will a normal defrost set off the alarm?
Set an Alarm Delay longer than your defrost cycle. A defrost that never ends will still cross it.
Does an independent logger make my controller secure?
No. It does not secure the controller or stop an attack. Change default passwords, update firmware and take controllers off the public internet. The logger makes sure a person finds out while there is still time to act.
Sources
News reports read on 9 November 2026. They are published in English.