Science & Tech · Cybersecurity · 54 mins ago
Cyberattack disrupted blood service refrigerators at three French sites
A cyberattack disrupted refrigeration controls at three French blood service sites on November 2.
The affected cold rooms stored plasma for transfusions and for making medicines.
The systems were managed by an equipment provider, whose name was not disclosed.
The settings were changed to very high temperatures, but the blood service’s monitoring and alarms quickly detected the problem.
No blood products or samples were damaged, and none were lost, the service said, with no health impact identified.
Affected products were moved as a precaution, and the equipment was controlled or taken out of service.
The service says it has stepped up monitoring and is working with France’s cybersecurity agency and health ministry.
A cyberattack altered temperature and defrosting settings at three sites run by France’s national blood service, the EFS.
The EFS said monitoring and alarm systems helped staff respond before any blood products or samples were compromised.
Products in affected cold rooms were either protected in place or moved to other facilities.
The EFS said it was not directly targeted and that the attack reached the sites through a refrigeration equipment provider.
The incident came amid a wider wave of attacks on refrigeration systems across Europe.
- Who
- France’s national blood service, the EFS, was affected.
- What
- Attackers altered temperature and defrosting settings in cold-storage rooms. The EFS reported no compromised blood products or samples.
- When
- Overnight on Monday, according to the EFS as reported by the Guardian.
- Where
- Three EFS sites in France. A report cited Burgundy and Franche-Comté, but the EFS did not publicly identify the sites.
- Why
- The motive is not known. The EFS said it was not directly targeted and that the attack reached it through a refrigeration equipment provider.
This story does not have two clearly opposing sides.
The EFS attack occurred, according to the EFS as reported by the Guardian.
The EFS confirmed the incident and said its monitoring and alarm systems had allowed technicians to intervene before products were compromised.
Reports described the attack as part of a wider wave affecting refrigeration systems across Europe.
- Affected sites
- Three EFS sites
- Affected equipment
- Cold-storage temperature and defrosting controls
- Reported temperature setting
- Up to 110°C, according to reports cited by Infosecurity Magazine and The Register
- Products
- Blood samples and plasma, including plasma intended for transfusions
- Response
- Products were protected in place or transferred to other facilities
9 sources
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What people are saying
no health impacts have been identified and no losses of blood products have been reported.
These are not isolated incidents and of course we have to be collectively resilient and prepared for such cyber incidents
there was no compromise to the safety of blood products