The massive disruption of “X” (formerly Twitter) services in distributed denial of service (DDOS) indicates a shift in hacker tactics. Cybersecurity experts point out that hackers view social media as a new form of critical infrastructure and launching large-scale attacks.
A DDOS attack is when hackers flood the website with fake traffic, overwhelm it and make it unavailable to real users. It’s like digital traffic jams.
X owner Elon Musk attributes these disruptions to massive cyberattacks, suggesting involvement from large-scale, coordinated groups and/or countries for the critical resources employed.
“The incident highlights the pivot seen in the motivation behind cyber threats. What used to be simple data theft and stripping has shifted to full-scale digital destruction. Andy Thompson, senior cyber researcher at Cyber ​​Arlab, said:
The problem is that these platforms are built for engagement rather than resilience. Attackers know this and treat them as digital battlefields. Because taking the platform offline can be as damaging as stealing data.
Confusion of belonging
What further complicates the issue is the confusion of belongings we see. Today’s cyber attacks are similar to the crime scene with multiple fingerprints, as Hacktivist Groups, Cyber ​​Criminals, and Nation-States are all working in parallel or holding jockeys for credit.
“It’s easy to assert responsibility, but it’s much harder to prove the person behind it. And when multiple actors rush to gain credibility, one thing becomes clear. The real purpose is not just the message, but the confusion itself,” he said.
“The Dark Storm team praises the attack on X, in line with the broader goal of destabilizing prominent digital platforms and infrastructure. The event highlights the key needs of strong cybersecurity protocols for social media platforms, which plays a key role in communications around the world,” the Checkpoint Checkpoint survey states.
In particular, in February, US organizations faced an average of 1,323 cyberattacks each week, with the fourth-most targeted industry rankings in the media and entertainment sector.
