A “503” error. This is what Internet users see when trying to connect to France-Visas, the online platform that allows you to apply for a visa in France. Inaccessible since June 28, it is still out of service this morning of June 29. The Russian hacker group User Sec denounces a cyberattack, according to information from the specialized site Numerama.
The mention of the 503 error refers to increased stress on the servers, which no longer manage to respond to connection requests.
Therefore, the attack is similar to a DDos attack, that is, a denial of service attack. Hackers ensure that a large number of connections are made at the same time on the site, in order to put the server down to the extent that it can no longer process a large number of requests simultaneously.
Contacted by Tech&Co, the Quai d’Orsay does not wish to comment on the situation at this time.
Russian attacks against French sites have been on the rise since several months and the start of the war in Ukraine. Last May, several town hall sites were attacked. The town hall of Bry-sur-Marne was thus affected. The message “Respect Russia! Otherwise we will continue to make war on you” appeared on the home page.
On June 13, the government denounced a Russian disinformation campaign of putting fake French sites online. The website of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs was targeted in particular, as were various media outlets. Last May, the Senate’s own website was attacked.
Source: BFM TV
