A breach at France’s tax system is stirring concern across the crypto industry because the leaked records could make wealthy holders easier targets for physical attacks. According to The Block, French tax authorities were hacked and sensitive data tied to nearly 678,000 individuals and businesses was exposed, raising fears of so-called wrench attacks against crypto holders.
Stolen VPN credentials opened access to DGFiP systems
The breach affected 678,437 records in total, including 392,000 individuals and 285,000 professionals or businesses. Attackers used stolen VPN credentials in late June to log into systems operated by France’s Directorate General of Public Finances, or DGFiP. They then used an internal search tool to extract data before access was cut off.
The exposed information included names, birth details, addresses, phone numbers, email addresses, income figures, tax identification numbers, withholding tax rates and family status. The dataset also identified higher earners with unusual precision: 26,800 people reported annual income above €116,000, 386 reported more than €1.16 million, and eight reported more than €11.6 million. DGFiP has confirmed the intrusion and said it is still investigating the scope of those affected.
Why the leak matters to crypto holders
In crypto, the bigger threat is often not phishing but wrench attacks, where criminals use violence or kidnapping to force victims to surrender private keys. Once attackers have access to real tax and income records, scam messages can appear far more credible and targets can be selected with greater precision.
The report also referenced earlier figures cited by Chain News. Chainalysis said wrench attacks totaled more than $30 million in the first half of this year, with France leading in case count. Security firm CertiK recorded 52 such incidents worldwide in the first half, 33 of them in France. In that context, the leaked tax database could function as a ready-made list of high-net-worth targets for potential attackers.