Close-up view of the hand of a nurse at a French blood facility holding a blood collection tube to receive a blood sample during a plasma donation session at Maison du Dom in Saint-Brieuc-Cote-des-Armers, Brittany, France, on July 28, 2026.
Helen Rigney AFP | Getty Images
French blood banks were affected by a recent cybersecurity attack on Europe’s refrigeration systems on Monday, the French Blood Agency confirmed on Wednesday.
The organization said that although it was not the direct target of the attack, cold storage warehouses operated by external providers that store EFS’ blood products were compromised at three locations, with temperatures increasing by the hackers.
“Specifically, temperature and defrost thresholds were set to excessively high levels,” EFS said in a statement translated from French to English by CNBC.
“These refrigeration units have been installed at EFS preparation and distribution sites and will be used to store samples for the EFS Biobank as well as blood products prior to delivery to healthcare facilities.”
Frozen plasma, which is used for blood transfusions during the manufacture of medicines, was also stored there.
EFS said monitoring systems were activated rapidly and, depending on the situation, affected equipment was brought under control or taken offline without impacting product or samples. EFS added that there was no loss of samples or blood products during the attack and that samples were immediately transferred to other facilities.
EFS is currently working with the French National Cyber Security Agency (ANSSI) and the Ministry of Health to strengthen the monitoring of its equipment.
Refrigerators in hundreds of supermarkets in France and other European countries, including Belgium, Sweden and Finland, were hacked remotely and their temperatures raised, potentially resulting in millions of euros worth of spoiled food being leaked.
“Several French Blood Facilities (EFS) regional facilities were affected by a cybersecurity incident that affected the monitoring and control systems of certain cold storage rooms.”
The French Ministry of Health said in a statement that the situation is currently under control and is being closely monitored, according to Reuters. They added that the safety of the blood supply remained “thanks to the facility’s monitoring and alarm system, as well as the precautionary measures immediately implemented.”
