From Computers To Refrigerators: How Hackers Could Put Blood Supplies At Risk (AI-generated) Hackers have found an unusual device to target. In a series of events across Europe, hackers are reportedly tampering with the temperature settings of refrigeration equipment used by France’s national blood establishment. It is raising concerns over the safety of frozen blood plasma stored for medical use. The attackers have allegedly changed the settings from nearly -30°C to 110°C after targeting Coolworld, a company that supplies cooling equipment and maintenance services to the French Blood Establishment (EFS). According to a report by Cybetattaque, citing French investigative newspaper Le Canard enchaîné, facilities in the Bourgogne-Franche-Comté region were among those affected. Reportedly the Healthy Ministry of France said the incident had no operational consequences. Some of the early reports noted that the incident involved samples collected from blood donors and retained for safety checks. However, EFS confirmed to Le Canard enchaîné that frozen plasma meant for patient transfusions was also among the supplies concerned. An on-call technician reportedly noticed the unusual temperature readings during the night, allowing teams to respond before the situation affected operations. There is no confirmation that any plasma was destroyed, transfusions were disrupted or patients were harmed. This incident shows how cyberattacks can eventually threaten even more than personal data and financial data. Targeting a third-party service provider may affect essential equipment used by hospitals and healthcare organisations. Refrigeration systems are necessary for preserving blood plasma, medicines and other temperature-sensitive medical supplies. Unauthorised changes to their settings may compromise these products and could affect patients. In this case, the timely detection by the technicians and the response from staff reportedly helped to prevent the operational consequences. The incident is an example of how independent temperature monitoring, stronger cybersecurity controls and regular checks of connected medical equipment have all been interlinked now in a world where hackers are constantly exploring new ways to conduct attacks. Govind Choudhary is the Chief Copy Editor for Tech at Times Now with over five years of experience in the media industry. He covers consumer technolog... View More