Hackers siphon over 100 million euros from Crédit Mutuel Arkéa, while Keytrade customers' accounts are spared
The attackers got in through an external supplier and used an internal account belonging to the bank itself.
French banking group Crédit Mutuel Arkéa, parent company of Belgian online bank Keytrade Bank, has been hit by a cyberattack in which fraudulent transactions were carried out. Arkéa provisionally puts the damage at around 100 million euros, RTBF reports. The Breton newspaper Le Télégramme put the figure at 118 million euros, an amount the bank did not confirm. Arkéa says the incident is under control and some transactions were temporarily suspended as a precaution.
According to La Libre, the attackers broke in through an external supplier's platform and then used an account the bank uses to manage its own liquidity to transfer money to other banks. Part of it was converted into cryptocurrency, while another part could be blocked. The fraud came to light through blockchain investigator ZachXBT. Arkéa and Keytrade Bank say customer accounts were not affected, VRT NWS reports.
Former Febelfin chief Karel Baert tells La Libre that the attack targeted the bank itself and that customers need not worry, because banks hold buffers to absorb such losses. An anonymous expert nonetheless calls the incident serious and wants tighter oversight of money flows between banks. Belgian banks must refund unauthorised payments resulting from fraud unless the customer was grossly negligent. The 100,000 euro deposit guarantee only applies if a bank fails, not in the event of a hack, La Libre also points out.