A cyberattack that occurred at the end of July continues to affect the operations of the National Museum of Natural History. The scientific research institution has decided to cancel an exhibition scheduled for this fall.
Months of complications for the Museum. The cyberattack hit the scientific research and dissemination center this summer, and on August 13, 2025, Gilles Bloch, the president of the National Museum of Natural History, warned on our channel: «It’s a truly massive attack.»
But perhaps he did not expect it to still have consequences on the operation of the site until October.
The National Museum of Natural History is currently experiencing a cyberattack that affects the entire functioning and services of the institution. All our services are affected and our programming is greatly impacted. Under these conditions, the organization of the exhibition «Autumn Tropical: Palm Trees, Treasures & Secrets» in 2025 is canceled.
National Museum of Natural HistorySeptember 4, 2025
The museum is modifying its fall programming but should be able to provide a calendar of events for the 2025-2026 year by the end of the month. The Museum wants to reassure its visitors: the galleries, zoological parks, and gardens remain open and operate normally.
Entrance of the public at the National Museum of Natural History
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© France 3 Paris Ile-de-France
«My heart aches for them,» laments cyberintelligence expert Damien Bancal, who documented the attack on his blog. «There are three main actors in this field: political hackers, activists who do this for publicity, and the Museum is a prime target due to its size, but it doesn’t seem like there have been any hacker claims in this case. Then there are the hackers who do it for money, they hijack the computer system in exchange for a ransom. Finally, there are unfortunately all the other small hackers who come in these cases to pose as the true authors and try to get money.«
And to conclude: «The response from President Gilles Bloch in the press this summer with ‘we will never pay’ suggests a potential hostage situation for money. And this cancellation in October for an attack that occurred at the end of July proves that this hostage situation has caused a lot of harm. We cannot restart all the computer systems until we are sure that everything is secure.«
Indeed, Gilles Bloch, head of the Muséum, had declared last August on France Info that according to «doctrine in the French state and in public administrations, ransom is not paid.
A complaint was filed this summer and the investigation is still ongoing.
The cyberattack that occurred at the end of July continues to affect the operation of the Muséum national d’Histoire naturelle. The scientific research institution has decided to cancel an exhibition scheduled for this autumn.
Months of complications for the Museum. The cyberattack hit the research and scientific dissemination center this summer and on August 13, 2025, Gilles Bloch, the president of the Muséum national d’Histoire naturelle, warned on our channel: «It’s a truly massive attack.»
But perhaps he did not expect it to still have consequences on the site’s operation until October.
The Muséum national d’Histoire naturelle is currently undergoing a cyberattack that affects the entire operation and services of the institution. All our services are affected and our programming is significantly impacted. Under these conditions, the organization of the 2025 Autumn tropical exhibition: palm trees, treasures & secrets is canceled.
Muséum national d’Histoire naturelleSeptember 4, 2025
The museum is adjusting its autumn schedule but should be able to provide a calendar of events for the 2025-2026 year by the end of the month. The Muséum wants to reassure its visitors: the galleries, zoological parks, and gardens remain open and operate normally.
«My heart goes out to them,» laments cyberintelligence expert Damien Bancal, who documented the attack on his blog. «There are three main actors in this field: political hackers, activists who do it for publicity, and the Muséum is a prime target due to its size, but it doesn’t seem like there have been any hacker claims of this kind. Then there are the hackers who do it for money, they hold the computer system hostage in exchange for a ransom. Finally, there are unfortunately all the other small hackers who attach themselves to these cases to pass themselves off as the real perpetrators and try to extort money.«
And to conclude: «The response from President Gilles Bloch in the press this summer with ‘we will never pay’ suggests a potential hostage situation for money. And this deprogramming in October for an attack that occurred at the end of July, it proves that this hostage situation has caused a lot of harm.
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Il est crucial de garantir la sécurité de tout le système informatique avant de le réinitialiser. Comme l’a souligné Gilles Bloch, directeur du Muséum national d’Histoire naturelle, la doctrine en vigueur dans l’État français et dans les administrations publiques est de ne pas payer de rançon en cas d’attaque cybernétique.
Une plainte a été déposée au pénal cet été et l’enquête est en cours pour élucider les circonstances de cette cyberattaque qui a perturbé le bon fonctionnement de l’établissement scientifique.
Cette cyberattaque a eu des répercussions majeures sur les activités du Muséum national d’Histoire naturelle, entraînant l’annulation d’une exposition prévue pour l’automne. Les services de recherche et de diffusion scientifique ont été fortement touchés, obligeant le musée à revoir son planning et à réorganiser ses événements.
Le Muséum national d’Histoire naturelle est actuellement victime d’une cyberattaque qui affecte l’ensemble de ses services et de ses activités. En conséquence, l’exposition prévue pour l’automne 2025 intitulée «Automne tropical : palmiers, trésors & secrets» a dû être annulée.
Museum national d’Histoire naturelleLe 4 septembre 2025
Malgré ces perturbations, le Muséum national d’Histoire naturelle assure que ses galeries, parcs zoologiques et jardins demeurent ouverts et fonctionnent normalement. Des ajustements ont été réalisés pour garantir la continuité des activités et une nouvelle programmation pour l’année en cours est en cours de finalisation.
La situation a profondément affecté l’expert de la cyberintelligence, Damien Bancal, qui a suivi de près cette affaire sur son blog. Selon lui, cette attaque pourrait être le fait de différents acteurs, notamment des pirates politiques, des activistes en quête de notoriété, ou des cybercriminels cherchant à obtenir une rançon en échange de la libération du système informatique pris en otage.
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