France reports over 140 cyberattacks linked to Paris Olympics 2024, none disrupted Games
By Sunita Iyer | First Published Aug 14, 2024, 1:36 PM ISTFrench authorities disclosed on Tuesday that over 140 cyberattacks were reported during the Paris Olympics, but none managed to disrupt the games or its associated activities.
French authorities disclosed on Tuesday that over 140 cyberattacks were reported during the Paris Olympics, but none managed to disrupt the games or its associated activities. The French government's cyber security agency, Anssi, provided an update on the cyber security landscape surrounding the Olympics, emphasizing the effective measures in place to protect critical systems and infrastructure.
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From July 26 to August 11, the Paris Olympics faced a barrage of cyber threats as anticipated. Anssi, the French cyber security agency, documented 119 reports of low-impact "security events" and 22 incidents involving successful cyberattacks on targeted information systems. Despite these incidents, none affected the competitions or operational aspects of the Games.
The cyberattacks primarily targeted governmental entities, along with critical sectors including sports, transportation, and telecommunications infrastructure. According to Anssi, a significant portion of these attacks were categorized as downtime incidents, with half of these being denial-of-service (DoS) attacks designed to overwhelm and incapacitate servers. Other incidents involved attempts to compromise systems and disclose sensitive data.
Anssi highlighted that the overall impact of these cyber events was relatively low, underscoring the resilience of the Olympic infrastructure against malicious cyber activities. The agency’s prompt responses and robust defenses prevented any significant disruption to the Olympic Games.
In early August, the Grand Palais, which hosted several Olympic events, along with approximately 40 other museums across France, fell victim to a ransomware attack. However, Anssi confirmed that this attack did not interfere with the Olympic Games' information systems. Ransomware attacks exploit vulnerabilities to encrypt and block access to computer systems, demanding a ransom for their release.
The Paris Olympics witnessed a considerable volume of cyber threats compared to previous events. During the pandemic-delayed Tokyo Olympics in 2021, organizers reported 450 million cyber operations, twice as many as those recorded during the 2012 London Olympics. Marie-Rose Bruno, director of technology and information systems for the Paris Games, had anticipated a much higher volume of cyberattacks, estimating "eight to 10 times more" than those seen in Tokyo.
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