French blood bank hit in latest cyberattack on fridges

PARIS: The cooling system of France's blood bank has been hit by a cyberattack similar to the hacker attack targeting refrigeration systems across Europe earlier this week, the EFS bank said on Wednesday, reported German Press Agency (dpa).

Cooling rooms at three of the bank's locations have been affected, EFS said.

The refrigeration systems, supplied by an external provider, were manipulated remotely, causing operating temperatures to rise to very high levels, it said.

Temperatures rose from -30°C to 11°C, according to investigative newspaper Le Canard Enchaîné.

Thanks to monitoring and alarm systems, the rise in temperature was detected quickly and action was taken swiftly. No samples or blood products were compromised, according to EFS.

The affected systems have since been brought under control, and blood products have been transferred to other facilities as a precautionary measure, it said.

EFS stores blood products and biological samples in cooling units before they are delivered to healthcare facilities.

The incident comes after cybercriminals targeted fridges and freezers in European supermarkets, causing temperatures to rise, including in Belgium, Sweden, Ireland, Luxembourg, Estonia, Finland, Germany and the Netherlands.

A similar large-scale attack in mid-October caused fridges to warm up in major French supermarket chains.