PARIS (BE Tech Desk): France’s Finance Ministry has confirmed that a cyberattack targeting the country’s tax administration resulted in taxpayer information being accessed and extracted, with authorities now working to determine the full extent of the incident.
In a statement issued on Wednesday, the ministry said a “malicious actor” claimed to have infiltrated the General Direction of Public Finances in late June. An official investigation subsequently verified that unauthorized access had occurred and that taxpayer data had been viewed and removed from the agency’s systems.
Officials said investigators are still assessing exactly what categories of information were compromised and how many taxpayers were affected. The ministry added that additional details will be released as the investigation progresses.
Individuals whose information may have been exposed will be contacted directly. According to the ministry, affected users will receive personalized notifications outlining the specific data that may have been accessed or extracted, along with any precautionary measures they should take.
A separate report by FrenchBreaches, a platform that monitors cyber incidents in France, claimed that data belonging to nearly 700,000 taxpayers had been stolen. The platform said the figure was provided by the individuals claiming responsibility for the attack.
The Finance Ministry has not confirmed that estimate, and its spokespersons did not immediately respond to requests for comment regarding the reported number of affected taxpayers.
