As the “Sword of Jerusalem” operation by Hamas commenced, Israel witnessed a significant spike in cyberattacks, with a staggering 100% increase within the past 24 hours, according to data from the “Cloudflare” cybersecurity company.
The surge in internet usage in Israel also reached an extraordinary rate, standing at 170% above the usual average. This surge comes in parallel with the launch of “Sword of Jerusalem” by Hamas early Saturday.
Statistics from the company indicate that mobile internet usage contributed to 52.8% of the total digital network traffic. This increase is attributed to the growing use of smartphones by Israelis to monitor on-ground developments.
This noticeable uptick in internet usage is connected to Palestinian fighters’ efforts to document their attacks through live streaming and the use of drones for remote attacks. It underscores the evolving approach of Palestinian attacks on Israel, incorporating advanced technologies.
The “Cloudflare” website recorded a surge in cyberattacks against Israel, with the American company’s systems observing a 100% increase in Distributed Denial of Service (DDoS) attacks targeting Israeli websites and systems since Saturday.
Furthermore, the Israeli newspaper “Jerusalem Post” faced electronic attacks on Sunday morning, causing a complete shutdown of its website.
The English-language Israeli newspaper posted on the X platform (formerly Twitter) that it was working to restore its website to normal functionality, ensuring it remains the primary source for covering the Israeli military operation against Palestine, known as the “Swords of Iron.”
Just hours before the Palestinian attack on Israeli towns surrounding the Gaza Strip, the official channel of Israeli President Isaac Herzog was hacked on the Telegram app, as reported by “The Defense Post.”
The official spokesperson for the Israeli Presidency deemed the attack as “criminal” in nature, denying any connection to the Palestinian-Israeli conflict. No sensitive data was compromised as a result of the attack.
Israel’s General Security Service initiated an investigation into the incident, but results have not been disclosed as of now.
