"Refrigeration equipment, which should be -30°C, was operated to reach 110°C" Authorities: "Multiple facilities were attacked, but no blood damage was found due to rapid anomaly detection"
(London=Yonhap News) Correspondent Kim Ji-yeon = As cyberattacks have targeted supermarket refrigerators across Europe, including France, it has been revealed that several blood management facilities were attacked to raise the equipment temperatures to ultra-high levels.
According to AP and Reuters on the 4th (local time), the French Ministry of Health said that several regional blood centers were hit by cyberattacks on the 2nd, but the situation is now under control and the blood products stored at these facilities have not been damaged. The French Blood Service (EFS) also confirmed the occurrence of the attack and said that the stored blood was not damaged. The Blood Center explained that at the three plasma storage facilities, the "temperature and defrosting (removal of frost) standard levels" had risen to extremely high levels, adding, "No health impact has been confirmed, and there has been no loss of blood products." Citing the French media outlet Le Canard Enchaîne, AFP reported that refrigeration equipment, which should have been set to -30 degrees, was manipulated to reach 110 degrees.
This attack targeted the company supplying refrigeration equipment to these three blood center facilities. The blood center said that the items stored there were blood plasma bags for transfusion and plasma for pharmaceutical manufacturing, and that all of them were either moved elsewhere or secured for safety. The Blood Center said that the monitoring and alert systems detected the anomaly promptly, allowing staff to take immediate action to prevent damage to blood products and samples. Charlie Dubois, spokesperson for the blood service, explained, "Blood can be needed at any time, so staff are on site 24/7," adding, "The alarm went off, and staff moved the blood to another refrigerator that was not connected to the system." The blood center added that blood collection and blood supply have continued without any disruption since then.
France's national cybersecurity authorities are investigating the incident together with the Ministry of Health. Earlier, in France, a hacking incident last month raised refrigerator temperatures in hundreds of supermarkets and marts above 50 degrees Celsius, and this has since spread to more than ten countries across Europe. It is estimated that massive damage occurred due to the refrigerator hacking incident. Dutch retailer Ahold Deluze, which has stores in the Netherlands, Belgium, and the United States, said it expects fourth-quarter sales to drop by up to 250 million euros and operating profit to fall by up to 100 million euros due to the cyberattack. Frans Muller-Delaz, CEO, said, "We contained operational disruptions within two weeks, but the work toward full normalization is ongoing," adding, "Cyber threats are becoming an increasingly harsh reality for business operations today."
Concerns over European security are growing due to a series of cyberattacks. As an increasing variety of devices and facilities, including commercial refrigeration systems, are being inspected and controlled remotely, vulnerabilities are also being pointed out. Some suggest that this may be part of the surge in hybrid warfare following the war in Ukraine. According to the British daily The Guardian, Thomas Renier, the EU Commissioner for Technology, said, "These are not separate issues, and we must be collectively resilient and prepared for such cyber incidents." cherora@yna.co.kr Kim Ji-yeon (cherora@yna.co.kr )
I don't know what's going on with the system, but Europe is too vulnerable to cyberattacks.
If countermeasures are not established quickly, it could even lead to a system collapse.
Our country should also prepare stronger defenses in advance.
