La Poste hit by IT bug: parcel collections and some letters delayed
Postal workers could not locate where packages were being kept
The service confirmed the issues were not caused by a cyberattack
Antonin Albert / Shutterstock
France’s national postal service has been hit by an IT bug, making it impossible for parcels to be delivered in several areas of the country.
The bug, which started on Monday (July 15) before affecting more services throughout Tuesday, prevented postal workers from accessing digital information about pre-paid letters and parcels being sent through Colissimo, a subsidiary of La Poste.
They were unable to locate the offices where the post they were to deliver was being kept, nor use their tablets to confirm they had picked up the parcels or that they had been correctly delivered.
It meant that parcels had to remain where they were and not enter into the delivery channels.
Banking services (through La Banque Postale) and ATMs were not affected by the bug.
Postal workers in the south of France were those most affected, including those in Nice, however a La Poste source told media outlet BFMTV that the breakdowns were happening “at random”.
La Poste says it is fixing the problem, and as of Wednesday morning, services appear mostly back to normal although issues may continue at some sites.
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A computer bug and not a cyberattack
La Poste also confirmed the issue was a computer bug, and not a cyberattack, and that user data has not been compromised.
The service was hit by a major cyberattack at the beginning of the year, as well as in May 2023, when its website was temporarily disabled.
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Read more: How to be reimbursed for lost or stolen parcels in France
