Following a network-wide outage at Orange for several hours, France has tasked its cybersecurity watchdog to conduct an audit of the network.
In a statement, Orange’s CEO Stephane Richard said, he was launching an internal inquiry into the disruption the results of which would be ready within seven days.
In a letter to the head of the National Agency for the Security of Information Systems (ANSSI), French Finance Minister Bruno Le Maire and Interior Minister Gerald Darmanin ordered the audit.
Both ministers wanted checks to evaluate “measures taken by the operator … notably those taken to ensure the routing of urgent communications,” says the letter.
French Health minister Olivier Veran said it was too early soon to determine whether there was any link between the outage and the deaths recorded during the period.
French President Emmanuel Macron said he was “very concerned” by the incident.
The French government and Bpifrance together hold nearly 23% stake in Orange.
