France’s ANTS Hacked, Nearly 19 Million Personal Records Potentially Exposed

FICOBA, managed by France’s Directorate General of Public Finances (DGFiP), is a centralized registry of bank accounts opened at French financial institutions and is used for checks across government agencies. Although the leaked data cannot be used to access deposits directly, it could facilitate targeted phishing, bank impersonation or unauthorized debits, drawing particular concern to the compromise of government credentials.

The DGFiP confirmed on February 18, 2026, that attackers had used a civil servant’s credentials since late January to view and extract data on about 1.2 million accounts, representing less than 1% of FICOBA. The information included RIB and IBAN details, account-holder names and addresses. An update on February 27 confirmed that tax identification numbers had not been accessed and that neither account balances nor transaction amounts were exposed. Those affected were notified throughout March.

FICOBA is France’s national bank account registry, managed by the General Directorate of Public Finances (DGFiP). It centrally records bank account details, account-holder identities and tax identification numbers. If leaked, such data could be used for identity theft, targeted fraud or the identification of financial assets, posing risks beyond account security alone.

As of July 19, 2026, the DGFiP had confirmed that hackers gained access to FICOBA by fraudulently using civil servants’ credentials, exposing about 1.2 million bank account records. Authorities have urgently restricted system access, launched an investigation and notified affected users. They have not disclosed any direct financial losses or confirmed that funds were stolen from accounts.