France Tax Data Breach Exposes 678,000 People as Crypto ‘Wrench Attacks’ Surge
Hackers reportedly stole sensitive French taxpayer data affecting around 678,000 people, potentially giving criminals a new database for identifying wealthy targets amid a surge in violent attacks against crypto holders.
The compromised records reportedly include names, birthdates, home addresses, phone numbers, email addresses, income information and tax identifiers. Nearly 27,000 victims reported income above €100,000, while 386 earned more than €1 million and eight reported over €10 million.
The stolen database is reportedly being offered for sale on dark web marketplaces. Although the breach does not specifically identify crypto owners, security experts warn that combining wealth and personal-location data could facilitate fraud, home invasions and kidnappings.
France has become a major hotspot for so-called “wrench attacks,” in which criminals use violence or threats to force victims to surrender cryptocurrency.
Chainalysis recorded 30 publicly known violent crypto attacks in France during the first half of 2026, with more than $30 million stolen. At the current pace, 2026 could surpass the record $58 million lost in 2025.
The incident follows other personal-data leaks affecting crypto users, including a recent breach at Trezor shipping provider ShipMonk that exposed information belonging to nearly 14,000 customers.
Hackers reportedly stole sensitive French taxpayer data affecting around 678,000 people, potentially giving criminals a new database for identifying wealthy targets amid a surge in violent attacks against crypto holders.
The compromised records reportedly include names, birthdates, home addresses, phone numbers, email addresses, income information and tax identifiers. Nearly 27,000 victims reported income above €100,000, while 386 earned more than €1 million and eight reported over €10 million.
The stolen database is reportedly being offered for sale on dark web marketplaces. Although the breach does not specifically identify crypto owners, security experts warn that combining wealth and personal-location data could facilitate fraud, home invasions and kidnappings.
France has become a major hotspot for so-called “wrench attacks,” in which criminals use violence or threats to force victims to surrender cryptocurrency.
Chainalysis recorded 30 publicly known violent crypto attacks in France during the first half of 2026, with more than $30 million stolen. At the current pace, 2026 could surpass the record $58 million lost in 2025.
The incident follows other personal-data leaks affecting crypto users, including a recent breach at Trezor shipping provider ShipMonk that exposed information belonging to nearly 14,000 customers.