PARIS — Just three days before Christmas, a cyberattack crippled France’s national postal service, La Poste, disrupting parcel deliveries and blocking online services at the busiest time of the year.
The outage, described by La Poste as a “major network incident,” left millions of customers unable to track packages or complete transactions, intensifying pressure on already stretched postal workers.
The incident began Monday morning and remained unresolved more than eight hours later, causing widespread disruption across the country. For a company that delivers 2.6 billion parcels annually, the impact was immediate and severe.
La Poste confirmed that the disruption was caused by a distributed denial of service (DDoS) attack, which overwhelmed its systems and rendered online platforms inaccessible. The company stressed that no customer data had been compromised.
While standard letter mail, including Christmas cards, continued to move through the system, any service requiring digital access ground to a halt. Package tracking, online postage purchases, and internal logistics systems were unavailable.
At post offices across Paris, frustrated customers queued for assistance, while staff struggled to explain delays. Some workers privately speculated about the source of the attack, mentioning Russia, a disgruntled individual, or internal sabotage.
French authorities have not commented on possible perpetrators. Paris prosecutors confirmed that an investigation has been opened, but no group has claimed responsibility for the cyberattack.
The outage also affected La Banque Postale, the financial arm of the postal service. Customers were unable to approve online payments or access certain banking services through the mobile application.
To limit disruption, the bank temporarily redirected payment approvals to text message verification. “Our teams are mobilized to resolve the situation quickly,” La Banque Postale said in messages shared on social media.
The incident comes amid heightened cybersecurity concerns in France. Just one week earlier, the Interior Ministry was targeted by a separate cyberattack that exposed sensitive police and security-related data.
Interior Minister Laurent Nunez said that breach resulted from internal “imprudence,” and French media reported the detention of a 22-year-old suspect in connection with the case.
In another recent incident, France’s counterespionage agency opened an investigation into a suspected cyber plot involving software designed to remotely control an international passenger ferry. A Latvian crew member remains in custody.
France and its European allies accuse Russia of engaging in “hybrid warfare,” combining cyberattacks, sabotage, disinformation, and espionage to destabilize opponents, particularly those supporting Ukraine.
While no link has been established between Moscow and the attack on La Poste, the timing and scale have renewed debate over the vulnerability of critical public services during periods of heightened geopolitical tension.