Hackers stage major raids on French tax computers

Hackers have infiltrated French tax and land registry computers, stealing sensitive data from hundreds of thousands of individuals and businesses, French authorities confirmed on Friday. The General Direction of Public Finance (DGFiP) reported two separate cyberattacks on its systems in June and July. Prior to these incidents, the hacking group Zerobytes had claimed responsibility for the breaches.

The first cyberattack, which took place in June, resulted in the theft of information on approximately 678,000 individuals and professional accounts. The stolen data included names, income details, and tax rates paid. The second attack occurred in July and targeted 200,000 land registry accounts, affecting about two million people who own property in France.

Zerobytes, the group that claimed responsibility for the hacks, stated they obtained the stolen data from a VPN used by tax officials. This group has a history of targeting French government computers in past cyberattacks. According to cybersecurity experts, France is among the countries most frequently targeted by cybercriminals.

In April, the agency responsible for identity document applications (ANTS) suffered a major data breach, impacting the information of nearly 12 million individuals and businesses. Earlier in February, the finance ministry revealed that a significant breach of its computer system had led to the theft of details for 1.2 million bank accounts.