France thwarted 24,000 cyber-attacks last year
France says it was the subject of 24,000 cyber-attacks against defence targets last year.
Defence Minister Jean-Yves Le Drian said such attacks were doubling every year and this year's presidential elections could be targeted.
France is no less vulnerable than the United States to cyber attacks from foreign countries and the French military will boost its resources to defend against them, the minister said yesterday.
In an interview with French weekly Le Journal du Dimanche Drian said there is a real risk of cyber attacks on French civil infrastructure such as water, electricity, telecommunications and transport, as well as against French democracy and the media, reports Reuters.
US intelligence agencies said in a report released on Friday that Russian President Vladimir Putin had directed a cyber campaign to help Republican Donald Trump's electoral chances by discrediting Democrat Hillary Clinton in the 2016 presidential campaign.
Asked whether France was immune from such attacks, Le Drian said “No, of course not, we should not be naive”.
France will hold presidential elections in April-May and leading conservative challenger Francois Fillon has said he wants to improve relations with Russia and has been praised by Putin. Far-right candidate Marine Le Pen also favours closer relations with Russia.
French-Russian relations have been strained by Russia's annexation of Ukraine's Crimea in 2014 and over Russia's role in the war in Syria. Outgoing socialist French President Francois Hollande has cancelled the sale of warships to Russia, and played a key role in imposing sanctions on Russia over Crimea.
Le Drian said that if the US election had indeed been manipulated, it would be an unbearable interference, as targeting a country's electoral means attacking its democratic foundations and its sovereignty.
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