Hackers have tampered with refrigeration systems at three plasma storage facilities in France, raising fresh concerns about cyber threats to critical infrastructure following similar attacks on hundreds of supermarkets in the country last month.
The French Blood Establishment (EFS) disclosed that attackers remotely accessed refrigeration control systems and altered temperature and defrost settings, pushing the equipment beyond safe operating limits.
The incident occurred overnight on Monday through an external refrigeration equipment supplier that provides services to the blood agency. The attackers targeted the supplier’s systems rather than the EFS internal network.
However, monitoring and alarm systems detected the unusual changes early enough for technicians to intervene before the incident damaged any blood products or medical samples.
Staff restored control of the affected equipment and moved some plasma supplies and samples to other facilities as a precaution.
The attack follows a similar incident between October 11 and 12, when hackers disrupted refrigeration systems across hundreds of French supermarkets, forcing retailers to discard large quantities of fresh and frozen food.
The October incident reportedly affected major retail chains, including Intermarché, Netto, Carrefour, Monoprix, E.Leclerc and Coopérative U. Some reports put the number of affected outlets above 500.
The attackers reportedly manipulated remote refrigeration settings, extending defrost cycles and allowing temperatures in some units to climb to approximately 50 degrees Celsius.
The incidents have drawn attention to the security of internet-connected refrigeration equipment, particularly systems that protect food supplies and essential medical products.
Notably, France’s National Cybersecurity Agency (ANSSI) and Ministry of Health are investigating the latest breach. Meanwhile, no hacking group has publicly claimed responsibility, and authorities have yet to establish whether both attacks share a common source.
By Musekir Faisat OmolaraÂ
