Specialists at the DGSI, one of whose missions is to protect France's economic and scientific heritage, know that giving gifts intended to"smooth"professional, commercial or social relations is a common practice.
Drawing on its counterintelligence culture, the DGSI notes, however, that these gifts can conceal other objectives that may amount to interference.
The warning is part of the service's regular alerts on economic interference. It aims to help French companies spread a culture of security internally.
Drawing on anonymized cases, the service describes patterns of which companies are regularly the target, without publicly naming the firms involved.
The alert focuses in particular on booby-trapped gadgets, suspicious invitations and gifts deemed too lavish.