Hacktivist groups have targeted Ireland as part of an orchestrated campaign of cyberattacks across EU member states.
The National Cyber Security Centre (NCSC) said that yesterday it became aware of a series of low impact Distributed Denial of Service or ‘DDoS’ attacks targeting a number of websites in Ireland.
It is understood that voting registration site voter.ie was among the sites targeted but that the impact was minimal.
A DDoS attack attempts to overwhelm a website or service with a flood of internet traffic, rendering it temporarily inaccessible.
“These attacks are typically low-cost and low impact, aimed at attracting attention rather than causing significant harm,” according to the NCSC.
The centre said that yesterday’s activity was part of a pattern of events across the EU and was in-line with the experiences of other EU member states.
“The NCSC has been working with the victims involved to provide technical advice and guidance and to co-ordinate the response process,” the Department of Environment, Climate and Communications said in a statement.
“The impact of these incidents has been minimal, not least because of the preparedness of the victims,” it added.
