French interior ministry targeted in massive cyberattack, minister confirms

France's Interior Ministry was targeted by a cyberattack several days ago that compromised email accounts and allowed hackers to access sensitive police files, Interior Minister Laurent Nuñez confirmed Wednesday.

"We were the target of a malicious intrusion a few days ago," Nuñez said in an interview on Franceinfo outlet. A judicial investigation is under way "to find the perpetrator very quickly."

The intrusion occurred when attackers accessed "certain professional email inboxes" and "recovered access codes," the minister said.

The hackers "were able to consult a number of important files," including the Criminal Records Processing System (TAJ) and the Wanted Persons File (FPR), Nuñez said.

"We don't yet know the extent of the compromise. To date, a few dozen files may have been removed from the system."

Nuñez said he could "absolutely not say whether this will compromise investigations or not," but insisted "it does not endanger the lives of our compatriots." No ransom demand had been received, the minister said.

The minister attributed the intrusion to "carelessness" despite regular reminders about security procedures. "All it takes is a few individuals who don't respect these rules," he said.

The attack, which lasted "several days," targeted email accounts at the Place Beauvau ministry, which employs nearly 300,000 people.

Last week, BFMTV revealed the ministry had discovered suspicious activity targeting its email servers. A group of hackers subsequently claimed without providing proof to have accessed data from more than 16 million people in police files.

"This is false," Nuñez said Wednesday. "We also referred the matter to the CNIL, the National Commission on Informatics and Liberty, as we are required to do by law. And then there was an administrative investigation that I requested."

France's Anti-Cybercrime Office (OFAC) is leading the investigation.