Crisis team activated

Cyberattack hits French ministries

According to French media reports, pro-Russian hackers are behind the attack.(Bild: leestat - stock.adobe.com)

Several ministries and state institutions in France have been hit by a large-scale cyberattack - apparently by pro-Russian hackers. Since Sunday evening, several government agencies have been hit by computer attacks of "unprecedented intensity".

A crisis unit was activated on Monday evening to take countermeasures, the government announced on Monday, as reported by French media. According to reports, Russian hackers claimed responsibility for the attack.

Much still unclear
This was reported by the newspapers "Le Monde" and "Le Parisien" as well as the broadcaster BFMTV. However, "Le Parisien" quoted a security official as saying that these attacks "cannot be attributed to the Russians at this stage". The impact of the attacks has been reduced for most state services and access to state websites has been restored, it said.

France accuses Russia of increased attempts at destabilization since the beginning of the war in Ukraine. In mid-February, France agreed with Germany and Poland to take joint action against Russian troll campaigns and cyber attacks. The three countries had become victims of the same Russian destabilization strategy and wanted to fight back together, it was said.