Massive 678K Taxpayer Data Breach Worries French Crypto Holders
A new threat has arisen in France for cryptocurrency holders, as threat actors have accessed personal information of a large number of taxpayers.
A pseudonymous hacker identified as Zerobytes managed to steal data from 678,438 contributors extracted from the General Directorate of Public Finances’ (DGFiP) site. According to local reports, the attacker claims that he compromised internal servers by using an internal search VPN tool.
The criminal, who would also be involved in previous attacks on French institutions, had their access cut off and was unable to recover all of the DGFiP contributor data. Nonetheless, the file is being sold for a few thousand euros to those interested.
The DGFiP acknowledged the attack had happened on June 12, stressing that it “immediately interrupted access to all accounts used in the identified incidents,” but that “access controls carried out on this occasion failed to detect that these intrusions had led to data theft, due to the sophistication of the attack.”
The institution also explained that data to access the site was not compromised and reported that new security measures were implemented to prevent a similar leak in the future.
“The DGFiP will contact each of the individuals and professionals concerned directly next week. They will receive individual information by email or post specifying the data likely to have been consulted or extracted and, where applicable, the vigilance measures to adopt,” it concluded.
French crypto holders have voiced their concerns on social media, fearing that this new leak could fuel more “wrench attacks” against them. France has become a hotbed for these crimes after a tax official allegedly sold data from high-profile crypto holders.
Alexandre Stachtchenko, Head of Strategy & Communications at Bitstack, called for a moratorium on the collection of personal data by state institutions, underscoring that France has put taxpayers in danger.
“Demand the moratorium: no more collection until the State knows how to safeguard what it has. Call out your deputies. Share. Privacy is a fundamental freedom that must be guaranteed,” he stressed.
By April, France had charged 88 people across 12 crypto-related kidnapping cases, with 41 attacks registered at that time.
