French television
network TV5Monde was forced to broadcast only pre-recorded programmes Thursday
after an “unprecedented” hack by self-proclaimed Islamic State militants, who
also hijacked its websites and social networks.
The Paris-based
company, whose programmes are broadcast in more than 200 countries worldwide,
was the target of a cyberattack that is “unprecedented for us and unprecedented
in the history of television,” TV5Monde boss Yves Bigot told AFP.
“Since 5:00am
(0300 GMT), we have only been able to put out a single programme on all our
channels. For the moment, we are unable to produce our own programmes.
We won’t be back up until 2 pm,” Bigot added.
“When you work in television… and you find out that your 11 channels are down,
of course that’s one of the most dreadful things that can happen to you,” he
said.
The hackers took
control of the station and its social media operations late Wednesday, blacking
out the TV channels and posting documents on its Facebook page purporting to be
the identity cards and CVs of relatives of French soldiers involved in anti-IS
operations, along with threats against the troops.
“Soldiers of
France, stay away from the Islamic State! You have the chance to save your
families, take advantage of it,” read one message on TV5Monde’s Facebook page.
“The Cyber Caliphate
continues its cyber jihad against the enemies of Islamic State,” the message
added.
TV5Monde regained
control of its social networks by 2:00am Thursday but television broadcasts
were likely to take hours, if not days, to return to normal.
The attack would
have required weeks of preparation, Bigot added. Its website was still offline
at 11 am and displaying an “under maintenance” message. – ‘Unacceptable attack’
– Prime Minister Manuel Valls said the hack was an “unacceptable attack on the
freedom of information and expression”, voicing “total solidarity with the
editorial staff.”
Senior government
members flocked to the station to show their support, with Interior Minister
Bernard Cazeneuve saying: “We are up against determined terrorists … we are
determined to fight them.”
Foreign Minister
Laurent Fabius said: “Everything is being done to find those who carried this
out, punish them, re-establish the programmes and prevent cyberterrorists
threatening freedom of expression in the future.”
The hackers had
accused French President Francois Hollande of committing “an unforgivable
mistake” by getting involved in “a war that serves no purpose”.
“That’s why the
French received the gifts of Charlie Hebdo and Hyper Cacher in January,” it
said on the broadcaster’s Facebook page, referring to attacks by Islamist
gunmen in Paris on the satirical magazine and Jewish supermarket that left 17
people dead over three days.
France is part of
a US-led military coalition carrying out air strikes against IS in Iraq and
Syria, where the jihadist group has seized swathes of territory and declared an
Islamic “caliphate”.
Close to 1,500
French nationals have left France to join the militants’ ranks in Iraq and
Syria, where they represent almost half the number of European fighters
present, according to a report released Wednesday by the French Senate
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