France’s national blood service says hackers accessed control systems at three cold stores used to stock vital blood products and raised temperature and defrosting thresholds to very high levels. Alarm systems alerted technicians, who intervened before the products were compromised.
The French blood service, known as EFS, said the incident happened overnight on Monday. The affected facilities are operated by contractors, rather than directly targeted EFS sites. Products stored there, including plasma bags for transfusions and medicine manufacturing, were moved to other locations.
EFS collects, tests, prepares and distributes blood, plasma and platelets to more than 1,900 hospitals in France, supporting more than a million patients each year. The service said it had alerted France’s national cybersecurity agency and health ministry, and strengthened monitoring of its equipment.
The incident comes amid a series of reported attacks and malfunctions affecting refrigeration systems across Europe. EFS said its case involved cold stores, while supermarkets in several European countries have also reported problems with fridges and freezers. No motive for the attacks is known, and no one has claimed responsibility.
Sources: The Guardian Technology.