Hackers Breach French Blood Storage Facilities Amid European Cyber Wave

Hackers breached the control systems of three cold storage warehouses storing vital blood products in France, raising temperatures inside the facilities, according to the French National Blood Service (EFS). Technicians intervened before any damage occurred thanks to alert systems. The warehouses are operated by contractors, and the service was not a direct target of the attack that occurred on Monday night.

The affected products, including plasma bags for transfusions and medication manufacturing, were transferred to alternative sites. The EFS reported the breach to France's National Agency for Information Systems Security (ANSSI) and the Ministry of Health, while stepping up equipment monitoring across its network. The public service supplies blood products to over 1,900 hospitals and helps more than one million patients annually.

This incident marks an escalation in a broader wave of cyberattacks targeting commercial refrigeration units across Europe. Temperatures in supermarket refrigeration systems in nearly a dozen European countries spiked to 50 degrees Celsius, causing millions of euros in food spoilage. On Tuesday, networks in Italy, Germany, Romania, and the United Kingdom were hit, following similar disruptions in Belgium, Estonia, Ireland, Finland, Luxembourg, the Netherlands, and Sweden earlier in the week.

European Union spokesperson Thomas Regnier noted that the incidents are part of a worrying trend requiring coordinated resilience. Intelligence agencies and national authorities are investigating the wave of attacks, though no group has claimed responsibility and the motive remains unclear. Experts warn that internet-connected commercial refrigeration units can be vulnerable to hackers when security updates are neglected.