Islamic hackers are carrying out a cyberwar against French websites

Thousands of French websites have been suffering cyberattacks in the wake of the Charlie Hebdo incident from what the country’s cyberdefense chief says are “more or less structured” groups of hackers, many of which are well-known Islamic hackers. 

Hackers have attacked 19,000 French websites in the aftermath of the raid on the office of Charlie Hebdo, according to France’s cyberdefense chief. The attacks were carried out by “more or less structured” groups, including some well-known Islamic hacking groups, Adm. Arnaud Coustilliere, head of the French Army’s cybersecurity department, told reporters on Thursday. Coustilliere defined them as “defacement,” referring to common attacks in which hackers take control of a site and replace its content.