Telegram, a popular messaging app, confirmed that it faced a “state actor-sized” cyberattack and is claiming that China is behind the attack, as reported by the CBC.
The platform was hit by a “powerful DDoS attack” that was linked to IP addresses located in China, according to a tweet from Telegram’s CEO, Pavel Durov.
Distributed Denial of Service (DDoS) attacks cause service interruptions by sending numerous requests in a targeted attack.
Durov also noted that the cyberattack coincided with protests in Hong Kong, which are taking place to oppose a controversial extradition law. The extradition law would allow people in Hong Kong to be extradited to China.
Since Telegram is an encrypted messaging app, it is a popular tool for protestors because it allows them to coordinate with each other without authorities finding out, according to the CBC. Durov also noted that other similar cyberattacks have also occurred during protests in Hong Kong.
The platform stated that Telegram users may be experiencing connectivity issues due to the cyberattack.
Source: CBC
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