On August 4, Bouygues Telecom, the third-largest France Telecom operator, confirmed a cyberattack compromising personal data of 6.4 million customer accounts, granting intruders entry to sensitive information, according to the operator’s online statement.
The stolen data includes contact details, contractual information, civil status or company data for professional subscribers, and international bank account numbers (IBANs). Bouygues fibre, which has about 26.9 million mobile customers, did not say when the breach was contained or provide technical details of the attack.
The incident has been reported to France data protection authority, CNIL. At the time of publication, the company’s dedicated web page for victims contained a hidden “noindex” tag—preventing search engines from listing the page and making it harder for affected users to locate the information. Bouygues has not commented on why the page was excluded from search results.
String of France Telecom Cyberattacks
The data breach at Bouygues telecom follows closely on the heels of another major incident targeting French telecom giant Orange.
On July 29, Orange warned customers of potential service disruptions after it moved to “isolate potentially affected services” during its own cyberattack response. Orange serves more than 290 million customers worldwide.
The proximity of the two incidents has fueled concerns about the security of France’s telecommunications infrastructure, which holds vast amounts of sensitive personal and financial data. Cybersecurity professionals warn telecom firms are increasingly being targeted by cybercrooks due to the number and financial value of their customers’ databases.
Bouygues Tel representative declined to comment or give further information on the extent, or origin, of the breach. The firm did, however, advise affected customers to be wary of any future illicit activities and monitor their bank accounts for suspicious transactions.
With telecommunication providers themselves now facing a mounting wave of cyber-attacks, the demand is growing for stronger defenses and faster response measures. As a leading one of the France Telecom largest mobile carriers, Bouygues’ breach demonstrates the potential impact these attacks can have on millions of consumers – and the imperative to move fast to protect their data.
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