The authorities in New Caledonia have raised alarm over a cyberattack that disrupted internet access in the archipelago. While the exact nature of the attack remains unclear, it was described as being of “unprecedented force” by Christophe Gygès, a local government official responsible for digital affairs. The attack coincided with French President Emmanuel Macron’s surprise visit to the region and was characterized by a surge in suspicious traffic, with the majority of IP addresses involved appearing to originate from Russia.
While Gygès attributed the attack to a distributed denial-of-service (DDoS) assault aimed at overwhelming an internet service provider’s infrastructure, other officials, like Mayor Sonia Lagarde of Nouméa, suggested a broader range of targets, including banks and other organizations. The swift response of government services, including the National Agency for Information Systems Security (ANSSI), helped contain the attack, but questions remain regarding its scope and motives. Despite the seriousness of the incident, no group has claimed responsibility, and the cybercrime unit of the Paris prosecutor’s office is leading an investigation to ascertain the full extent of the attack’s impact and the identity of the perpetrators.
ANSSI, the agency responsible for cybersecurity in France, has yet to provide detailed information or comment on the situation. Typically, when state-affiliated groups carry out DDoS attacks, they tend to publicize their actions, but no such claims have emerged regarding this incident. As authorities continue to analyze the situation and investigate the targets affected by the cyberattack, concerns persist about the vulnerability of critical infrastructure and the potential for future disruptions.
