Cyberattacks targeting French blood banks on Monday sought to raise temperatures in plasma storage units to dangerous levels, according to the French Blood Establishment (EFS). The incident comes shortly after a wave of similar attacks affected refrigeration systems in supermarkets across several European countries, leading to significant food spoilage.
At three EFS cold-storage sites, "temperature and defrosting thresholds were raised to extremely high levels," the organization stated late Tuesday. However, monitoring and alarm systems detected the anomalies, allowing staff to intervene and prevent any loss or compromise of blood products and samples. No health consequences have been identified, and blood collection and distribution operations remain uninterrupted.
Officials said the cyberattack hit a supplier of refrigeration equipment. The affected products included plasma for transfusions and for manufacturing medicines, which were either transferred or secured. France's national cybersecurity agency and the Health Ministry are investigating the incident, and the EFS has not commented on the origin of the attack or identified responsible parties.
This incident echoes a broader trend of cyber disruptions across Europe. Earlier this week, hackers reportedly shut down refrigerators and freezers in supermarkets in countries including Sweden, Belgium, Luxembourg, Ireland, the Netherlands, Estonia, and Finland. This resulted in millions of euros worth of food being discarded. IKEA was among the affected retailers.
These attacks follow a similar incident in France last month where hackers reportedly gained control of cooling units at hundreds of supermarkets, causing food losses and fires. Ahold also reported a cybersecurity incident to the police last month.
The series of attacks, including recent hoax bomb threats that disrupted flights across Europe, has led some security experts to suggest a potential pattern of coordinated disruption. While no country has been officially named as responsible for the blood bank or supermarket incidents, some analysts have pointed to state actors as a possibility, particularly in the context of heightened geopolitical tensions. Russian President Vladimir Putin has recently warned of the potential for major conflict, and some security officials fear an increase in European sabotage campaigns. Poland has recently bolstered its security forces on its border with Russia amid fears of provocations. In Romania, a sabotage network allegedly acting on behalf of Russian intelligence agencies was uncovered, with members preparing attacks on defense industry facilities.