French blood banks face cyberattack, no blood damaged
Summary
France’s national blood service EFS said a cyberattack raised temperature thresholds in its refrigeration systems, but alarm systems prevented any blood or blood products from being ruined. Products in affected rooms were moved to other sites. EFS said it was not directly targeted; the attack hit its contractors. The incidents come amid a series of refrigeration-system attacks on European retailers, and EU agencies are discussing a collective response.
Key Facts
- EFS collects, tests, prepares and distributes blood, plasma and platelets to more than 1,900 hospitals in France.
- The service supports more than a million patients per year.
- EFS said it had reinforced all its equipment and alerted France’s national cybersecurity agency and health ministry.
- No group has claimed responsibility for the attacks, and police have not found a motive.
- Thomas Regnier, a European Union spokesperson, said EU agencies were holding urgent discussions with national authorities about a collective response.
Empty refrigerated shelves are seen inside a Delhaize Shop & Go store after an overnight IT incident affected cooling and freezer systems in a number of Delhaize stores in Belgium and Luxembourg, causing temperature spikes in refrigeration units, in Linkebeek near Brussels, Belgium, Nov. 2. Reuters-Yonhap
France's national blood service suffered a cyberattack on its refrigeration systems, in an apparent escalation of attacks on European refrigerators and freezers.
The French blood service EFS said the temperature thresholds were raised "to very high levels" in the attack, but no blood or blood products were ruined, thanks to alarm systems. Products stored in the affected rooms were moved to other sites.
The EFS collects, tests, prepares and distributes products such as blood, plasma and platelets to more than 1,900 hospitals in France. It supports more than a million patients per year.
The attack mirrors those on grocery stores in 12 countries recently that caused millions of euros in food loss. Some systems' temperatures were raised to 122 degrees Fahrenheit.
On Monday, systems in Belgium, Estonia, Ireland, Finland, Luxembourg, the Netherlands and Sweden reported issues, and on Tuesday, retailers in Italy, Germany, Romania and Britain were targeted.
Last month in France, hackers attacked the refrigeration systems at 700 supermarkets. On Wednesday, a branch of France's Crédit Mutuel Bank said it had suffered a cyberattack.
The Pentagon is also investigating a series of mysterious refrigerator malfunctions at commissaries at six military bases in August, The Guardian said.
Thomas Regnier, a spokesperson for the European Union, said its agencies were having urgent discussions with national authorities to create a collective response.
"These are not isolated incidents and of course we have to be collectively resilient and prepared for such cyber incidents," Regnier said.
No group has claimed responsibility for the attacks, and police haven't yet found a motive.
EFS said it was not a direct target, but the attacks hit its contractors, and that all of its equipment had been reinforced. It also said it had alerted France's national cybersecurity agency and the health ministry.
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