The Paris prosecutor’s office has opened an investigation into a Cyberattack on Crédit Mutuel Arkéa, after the bank reported losses estimated at nearly €100 million. The investigation, launched following a complaint by the banking group, concerns an alleged organised attack on an automated data-processing system and has been assigned to France’s Office for the Fight Against Cybercrime (OFAC), the prosecutor’s office said on Wednesday, November 4.
According to the bank, the attackers used an Arkéa account to transfer money to other banking institutions, then converted the funds into cryptocurrency through specialist platforms. Arkéa said the criminals did not use accounts belonging to customers of its regional federations or subsidiaries. It also denied reports that Fortuneo was the point of entry, saying the attackers accessed the group directly through a service provider’s platform.
The bank described the incident as a sophisticated external attack and ruled out human error by its own staff. It did not confirm a figure of $133 million, or €118 million, reported by Le Télégramme, but said the reported amount was of a similar order of magnitude.
Arkéa said some of the funds had been blocked and that further efforts were under way to recover them. The amounts affected are still being assessed, but the group said they would not undermine its financial strength or health. It added that the attack had been contained.
As a precaution, the bank temporarily suspended some transactions to secure operations and prevent further fraudulent transfers. Most operations resumed during the morning after Arkéa and its subsidiaries carried out checks and introduced stronger security measures.
Sources: Le Monde Économie.