France Govt Websites Faces Heavy Cyber Attack Post-Telegram Founder Arrest

The protest against the arrest of Telegram Founder and CEO Pavel Durov by officials in France is taking a new twist. The government’s websites are now under attack. With more than 24 hours in custody, the government faces serious reprisals from different ends.

Solidarity For Telegram CEO: France Govt Websites Down

It is quite uncommon for a foreign government to face a heavy attack. Le Parisien reported that at least two websites have been powered down. These websites include the official government site that archives current laws and regulations. Additionally, the platform of the National Agency for the Safety of Medicines and Health Products (ANSM) was also down due to DDoS attacks.

As reported earlier, Pavel Durov now faces about 12 different charges and his incarceration may extend to 96 hours. The arrest of the Telegram CEO is considered a highly politically motivated one. Even Russian officials were denied access to the Durov in another power-play between the West.

On Monday, French President Emmanuel Macron took to X to clear the air regarding the arrest. According to him, the arrest was purely based on Judicial investigation. He noted that the officials in charge are left with ruling on the matter.

Many world leaders and investors including Elon Musk have rallied behind Pavel Durov. Elon Musk is particularly concerned about the case as someone with a strong a advocacy for freedom of expression. The X Chairman understands that he is also not immune from related crackdowns as he has not given in to censorship requests from world governments.

Recently, X Corp left Brazil over strained censorship demands from Supreme Court Justice, Alexandre de Moraes.

Next Step In The Durov Case

It remains unknown what the fate of the Telegram CEO will be, however, the associated coins are bearing the brunts. Toncoin (TON) is currently at risk of slipping off the top 10 of digital currencies. Other native tokens like Notcoin and Hamster Kombat are also under heavy duress.

While TON’s price at the time of writing was pegged at $5.525, down by 4.76% in 24 hours, NOT has slipped by 9.3% to $0.008727. If the trends do not change positively, Notcoin price risks falling back to $0.005 in the near term.