TLDR
- Elon Musk claimed Ukraine was behind a cyber attack on X (formerly Twitter) that caused major outages
- Pro-Palestinian hacker group Dark Storm Team claimed responsibility for the DDoS attack
- Dark Storm Team has ties to Russia and is known for targeting NATO countries
- At peak outage, Downdetector recorded nearly 40,000 users unable to access X
- The attack comes amid protests against Musk’s Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE)
A massive cyber attack hit X (formerly Twitter) on Monday, causing multiple outages throughout the day. Users could not access the platform during at least three major disruptions. At the peak of the outage, nearly 40,000 users reported being unable to access the social media site, according to Downdetector.
A hacking group called Dark Storm Team claimed responsibility for the attack. The group posted on Telegram that they “took Twitter offline.” They included screenshots showing failed connection attempts from various locations around the world.
The Telegram channel has since been deleted for breaking the platform’s rules. Dark Storm Team is described as a pro-Palestinian hacker group that has been active since 2023.
The group has ties to Russia. They are known for targeting NATO countries and entities that support Israel’s operations in Gaza following the Hamas attack on October 7, 2023.
Elon Musk, the owner of X, confirmed the platform had been hit with a cyber attack. He posted a series of messages on X about the incident once service was restored.
Musk suggested the attack was more than just the work of a small group. “We get attacked every day, but this was done with a lot of resources,” he wrote on X.
Musk pointed to Ukraine as the source of the attack
In an interview with Larry Kudlow on Fox News, Musk pointed to Ukraine as the source of the attack. “We’re not sure exactly what happened but there was a massive cyberattack to try and bring down the X system with IP addresses originating in the Ukraine area,” he said.
This directly contradicts the claim of responsibility from the Dark Storm Team. Cybersecurity group SpyoSecure reported that Dark Storm’s leader had taken credit for the distributed denial-of-service (DDoS) attack in a Telegram post.
Ed Krassenstein, a social media personality and co-founder of NFT marketplace NFTz.me, stated he was in contact with Dark Storm’s leader. According to Krassenstein, the leader claimed the attack was “just a demonstration of our strength, with no political motives.”
Difficult period for Musk
The cyber attack comes during a difficult period for Musk’s other ventures. There have been protests at Tesla facilities across the United States in recent days.
These protests are part of a “Take down Tesla” movement. The protesters are targeting Musk’s role in the Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE), which is cutting many government departments.
Musk defended these cuts during his Fox News interview. He told Kudlow that DOGE is “doing the right thing” by reducing spending on initiatives that “very few taxpayers would agree make sense.”
Tesla’s stock has also been struggling recently. In the most recent trading session, Tesla dropped over 15% to $222 per share. The stock fell another 3% to $215 in after-hours trading, according to Google Finance.
Despite these recent drops, Tesla stock has still increased by 24% over the past year. However, it remains well below its all-time high of $480 set on December 17, 2024.
This is not the first time X has faced a DDoS attack. Last August, Musk claimed the platform was targeted by hackers before his interview with then-presidential candidate Donald Trump.
A DDoS attack works by overwhelming a website or service with a flood of traffic from many sources. This makes it difficult or impossible for regular users to access the site.
User functionality on X was quickly restored after the attack, according to reports. The platform has not shared details about any data breaches or other security issues related to the incident.
Musk has been the owner of X since October 2022, when he purchased the platform then known as Twitter. He has made many changes to the site since taking ownership.
Stay Ahead of the Market with Benzinga Pro!
Want to trade like a pro? Benzinga Pro gives you the edge you need in today's fast-paced markets. Get real-time news, exclusive insights, and powerful tools trusted by professional traders:
- Breaking market-moving stories before they hit mainstream media
- Live audio squawk for hands-free market updates
- Advanced stock scanner to spot promising trades
- Expert trade ideas and on-demand support
