Cyberattack on French blood bank refrigerators raises alarms across Europe
Blood storage systems at three French EFS sites were targeted in a cyberattack that attempted to raise temperatures to 110°C. No blood products were lost, authorities confirmed.
French blood bank refrigerators hit in coordinated European cyberattack
Blood banks in France were among the targets of cyberattacks on refrigeration systems across several European countries on Sunday and Monday, French authorities confirmed on Wednesday, as reported by dw.com.
The French Blood Establishment (EFS) said a "cybersecurity incident" struck a refrigeration service provider, compromising control systems at three cold storage sites holding plasma and blood samples. The attack attempted to push temperatures to 110°C (230°F) — far above the required storage temperature of -30°C (-22°F) — but was intercepted before any damage occurred.
"No health consequences have been identified, and no blood products were lost," the EFS said in a statement, adding that distribution operations were not interrupted. Plasma held in the affected units was transferred or secured as a precaution.
The incident was first reported by French weekly newspaper Le Canard Enchaîné. The EFS credited monitoring and alarm systems with catching the anomalies in time: "Monitoring and alarm systems quickly detected the anomalies, allowing staff to take action to ensure that no blood products or samples were compromised."
France's cybersecurity agency and Health Ministry confirmed an investigation is underway. No suspects have been identified. The Health Ministry said remote access to the targeted refrigerators was subsequently disabled.
Coolworld, the company that supplied the refrigeration equipment, said the vulnerability originated with a "third-party supplier and was outside Coolworld's direct control."
The blood bank incident coincided with a broader wave of refrigeration cyberattacks that struck supermarkets in France, Germany, and other European countries over the same weekend, destroying large quantities of frozen food. That attack followed a similar incident three weeks earlier targeting refrigeration systems at dozens of French supermarkets.
The cumulative impact on the retail sector has been significant. Dutch supermarket chain Ahold Delhaize said on Wednesday it expects a cyberattack in October to reduce its quarterly sales by as much as €250 million ($281 million). "While most of the disruption was contained within two weeks, work continues to fully restore our normal operations," CEO Franz Muller said.
Source: Google News MT