Blood banks hit by cyberattack in France days after European freezer hacks

Key Points:

• French authorities thwarted a cyberattack on several blood banks that attempted to raise cold-storage temperatures to extremely high levels, preventing any damage to blood products or samples.
• The attack targeted refrigeration equipment at three cold-storage sites for plasma, with temperatures reportedly raised from minus 30°C to as high as 110°C, but monitoring systems detected the issue in time.
• The incident follows a series of cyberattacks on refrigeration systems in European supermarkets, which caused millions of dollars in spoiled food and disrupted operations across France, Belgium, and the Netherlands.
• Dutch supermarket chain Ahold Delhaize reported significant financial losses due to the cyberattacks, expecting a $281 million sales reduction and a $112 million hit to operating income in the fourth quarter.
• France's national cybersecurity agency and Health Ministry are investigating the blood bank incident, while the refrigeration supplier Coolworld acknowledged the vulnerability stemmed from a third-party component beyond its direct control.