Sky News reported that the French national blood service (EFS) was targeted by hackers who accessed temperature control systems at three regional cold stores. The attackers attempted to raise internal temperatures to extremely high levels, but the attempt was detected and stopped before any damage occurred.
The French health ministry confirmed the situation was "under control" and "being closely monitored." A statement from the ministry emphasized that the safety of blood supplies was preserved due to the facilities' monitoring and alarm systems, along with immediate precautionary measures.
The EFS stated that temperature and defrost thresholds were raised to "very high levels" during the attack, but confirmed that "no health consequences have been identified, and no blood products were lost." The organization clarified that the attack did not target EFS directly, but rather one of its external providers.
According to EFS, the stored products included bags of plasma intended for transfusions and plasma used to manufacture medicines. These were either transferred or secured as a result of the incident.
In a statement to Sky News, EFS said: "At this stage, we are not in a position to comment on the origin of the cyber incident or identify those responsible."
The incident follows a series of cyber attacks across Europe. On Monday, refrigeration systems in supermarkets in Ireland, Sweden, the Netherlands, Belgium, Luxembourg, and Estonia were remotely compromised, causing temperatures to rise and food to spoil. Ireland’s SuperValu reported that 13 of its 223 stores were affected, leading to the removal of chilled and frozen products from sale.
The attacks come amid warnings from the UK’s National Cyber Security Centre (NCSC), which stated that artificial intelligence is "helping to industrialise cyber attacks" and is "highly likely" to be used in attacks on Britain’s critical national infrastructure by 2028. The NCSC also identified China as the "most sophisticated and sustained cyber challenge facing the UK."
The French Blood Establishment continues to monitor the situation, and no further details on the investigation have been released.
