French cities hit hard by massive cyber attack, operations disrupted

TLDR:

• A massive cyber attack disrupted operations across several French municipalities.
• The attack targeted shared servers and impacted services in multiple areas, forcing municipalities to communicate via social media and websites.

A “large-scale cyber attack” has affected various French municipalities, disrupting local government services since April 9. The attack targeted shared servers, taking down business systems, email, and phone lines across Saint-Nazaire, Montoir-de-Bretagne, Donges, La Chapelle-des-marais, Sonadev, and Pornichet. This resulted in impacted local authorities resorting to social media and websites for communication. Despite cybersecurity teams working to mitigate the attack, officials warn that restoring services could take months. The incident’s origins remain unknown, and officials have not disclosed if any sensitive information was leaked. French municipalities have previously been targeted by various cyber threats, including ransomware attacks and DDoS attacks on government websites. French President Macron and cybersecurity officials have raised concerns about potential cyber attacks during the Paris Olympics, urging additional resources to reduce the risk of major incidents.