Cyberattack: French bank says online hacking stole around $100 million

Credit Mutuel Arkea, a French cooperative bank, announced on Thursday that hackers had stolen approximately €100 million (US$112.61 million) in a cyber heist, marking a rare instance of cybercriminals successfully stealing from a mainstream bank. The attack, made public on Wednesday, follows the theft of $6.3 billion in cryptocurrency from Binance and a surge of cyberattacks targeting internet-connected devices in Europe. French prosecutors are currently investigating the incident.

The cybercriminals exploited an account belonging to Credit Mutuel Arkea to carry out fraudulent transactions, according to the bank. While the stolen funds were not in cryptocurrency form, they could potentially be converted to crypto after the theft. Credit Mutuel Arkea temporarily suspended some transactions as a precaution, causing delays in certain transfers, but assured that customer assets remained unaffected.

The bank denied media reports suggesting its online banking subsidiary, Fortuneo, served as the entry point for the attack, emphasizing that neither Fortuneo nor its customers' accounts were involved.

Cybersecurity experts describe the Credit Mutuel attack as unprecedented in Europe, highlighting the increasing sophistication of cyberattacks targeting banking institutions. Rafay Baloch, CEO of cybersecurity and security engineering firm RedSecLabs, attributed the rarity of such incidents to the advanced applications and social engineering tactics employed in targeted attacks on financial institutions.

French prosecutors received a complaint from Credit Mutuel Arkea on Wednesday and promptly initiated an investigation led by France's cybercrime police.

Credit Mutuel Arkea, with over 5.8 million customers and €211.5 billion in assets, is part of the broader Credit Mutuel banking network and operates with significant strategic autonomy. While successful cyberattacks on large financial institutions are uncommon, financial regulators worldwide have intensified warnings about the risk of cyberattacks, particularly as artificial intelligence becomes more prevalent.

Puneet Kakkar, Managing Director at Nardello & Co in Paris, emphasized the gravity of any breach in the financial system.