Cyberattack Halts La Poste Operations at Peak Season
A pro-Russian hacker collective has taken credit for a significant cyberattack that severely disrupted France’s national postal service, La Poste, just days before Christmas, authorities confirmed. The incident, attributed to a distributed denial-of-service (DDoS) assault, knocked key systems offline and interfered with delivery tracking and online payments, complicating operations during the busiest time of the year.
French prosecutors say the cybercrime group known as Noname057 claimed responsibility for flooding La Poste’s servers with traffic, overwhelming central computer infrastructure beginning Monday. While efforts to restore full service continued through Wednesday, the outage affected package delivery updates and the banking functions of La Banque Postale.
Intelligence Agencies Take Over Investigation
In response to the attack, France’s domestic intelligence service, the DGSI, has assumed control of the federal investigation into the breach. Prosecutors noted that Noname057 has been linked to previous cyberattacks across Europe, including operations targeting government and summit-related digital platforms.
La Poste — which handles billions of parcels annually and employs over 200,000 workers — reported that while internal systems were inaccessible, traditional letter services continued. The timing of the outage heightened concerns among businesses and the public relying on holiday deliveries.
Broader Concerns Over “Hybrid Warfare” Tactics
The attack adds to growing alarm among European allies about the escalation of cyber threats labelled as part of “hybrid warfare.” Officials contend that hostile cyber operations aim to destabilize critical infrastructure and undermine public confidence. Similar incidents have affected other sectors and government systems across the continent, stretching law enforcement resources.
