Cybersecurity Crisis: France Faces Major Data Breaches
By Editor • August 19, 2026 • 1 min read
In a concerning wave of cyberattacks, French government agencies, particularly the tax authority, were targeted, resulting in the theft of sensitive data from hundreds of thousands of citizens and businesses.
On August 14, the Public Finance agency (DGFiP) revealed that two significant breaches occurred in June and July. The first hack compromised information from over 678,000 accounts, including vital details such as names, income data, and tax rates. The following month saw the theft of data from an additional 200,000 land registry accounts.
The hacking group responsible, known as ZeroBytes, claimed responsibility on a dark-web forum, stating they gained access to a VPN utilized by tax officials. They indicated that their motivation was financial, disclosing that they had already sold the stolen information to two buyers for thousands of euros. Moreover, they claimed to have data on approximately 250,000 land registry accounts impacting about 2 million property owners in France.
In response to this alarming situation, Prime Minister Sébastien Lecornu directed the National Cybersecurity Agency to establish a new cyber unit to bolster defenses. Budget Minister David Amiel announced plans to employ artificial intelligence tools focused on identifying cybersecurity vulnerabilities, emphasizing the use of domestic AI providers.
Source: www.france24.com
