TL;DR
A pro‑Russian hacking collective identified as Noname057 says it carried out a distributed denial‑of‑service attack on La Poste on December 22, taking central systems offline and disrupting package deliveries and some banking services. Reuters reported the outage was not fully resolved as of the following Wednesday, and law enforcement agencies including Europol and the US Justice Department have previously acted against the group.
What happened
On December 22, La Poste, France's national postal service, experienced a distributed denial‑of‑service incident that knocked central computer systems offline, according to Reuters. The outage caused significant disruption to parcel deliveries in the run‑up to Christmas: postal workers were unable to track packages, and online payment functions provided through La Banque Postale were also affected. Regular letter delivery was reported as not impacted. The pro‑Russian hacking collective known as Noname057 has claimed responsibility for the attack; the group has been linked to numerous incidents across more than a dozen countries and has focused largely on Ukraine and states perceived as supportive of Ukraine. Reuters said the disruption was still not fully resolved by the Wednesday after the attack. Europol carried out a sizable operation against the group earlier in the year, and the US Justice Department has also been involved in actions related to the collective.
Why it matters
- Disruptions to postal IT systems can delay time‑sensitive deliveries and commerce, especially during peak holiday periods.
- Interruption of banking‑related online services (La Banque Postale) shows how cyber incidents can affect financial transactions tied to infrastructure providers.
- Claims by a politically aligned hacking group underscore the potential for geopolitical tensions to manifest as cross‑border cyber disruption.
- Prior law enforcement operations against the group highlight both the threat level and international coordination to counter such actors.
Key facts
- Date of incident: December 22 (reported by Reuters).
- Target: La Poste, the French national postal service.
- Type of attack: distributed denial‑of‑service (DDoS) that took central computer systems offline.
- Service impact: package tracking unavailable and online payments via La Banque Postale disrupted; regular letters reportedly unaffected.
- Per Reuters, the cyberattack was not fully resolved as of the Wednesday following the incident.
- Group claiming responsibility: Noname057, described in the source as a pro‑Russian hacker collective.
- Noname057 has reportedly been involved in attacks in over a dozen countries and has mostly targeted Ukraine and Ukraine‑friendly nations.
- Europol launched an extensive operation against Noname057 earlier in the year.
- The US Justice Department has also been involved in actions related to the group.
What to watch next
- Progress on La Poste's full recovery and restoration of package‑tracking and payment systems (confirmed ongoing at time of reporting).
- Further law enforcement actions or public attribution updates from Europol and the US Justice Department (not confirmed in the source).
- Any additional claims of responsibility or follow‑on attacks against other national postal or financial services (not confirmed in the source).
Quick glossary
- DDoS (Distributed Denial‑of‑Service): A type of cyberattack that floods a target's network or services with traffic to render systems slow or unusable.
- La Poste: France's national postal service, which manages mail delivery, parcel services and related logistics.
- La Banque Postale: The banking division associated with La Poste that provides online payment and financial services.
- Europol: The European Union's law enforcement agency coordinating cross‑border criminal investigations and operations among member states.
- Noname057: A hacking collective described in the source as pro‑Russian that has been linked to multiple cyber incidents across several countries.
Reader FAQ
Who said they carried out the attack?
The group known as Noname057 has claimed responsibility.
What services at La Poste were affected?
Package tracking and online payment services via La Banque Postale were disrupted; regular letter delivery was reported unaffected.
Is the outage fully resolved?
Not confirmed in the source; Reuters reported the issue was not fully resolved as of the Wednesday after the attack.
Were any arrests or takedowns reported?
Not confirmed in the source.
Cybersecurity Pro-Russian hacker group claims responsibility for DDoS attack on French postal service The group known as Noname057 has been involved in numerous attacks across Europe. Andre Revilla Contributing Reporter…
Sources
- Pro-Russian hacker group claims responsibility for DDoS attack on French postal service
- Pro-Russian hackers claim cyberattack on French postal …
- France probes cyberattack on postal service claimed by …
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