French TV network hacked by pro-ISIS group
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The French television network TV5Monde says that it was hacked by individuals with ties to Islamic State, who took over its websites and Facebook page and prevented the station from broadcasting programing for three hours late Wednesday.
By 1 a.m. Thursday, the Paris-based network was able to partially resume broadcasting, Agence France-Presse reports, but director general Yves Bigot said its systems were "severely damaged" by an "unprecedented attack" that had to have taken weeks to coordinate. The network also said it could take several days to become fully operational again.
On TV5Monde's Facebook page, the hackers posted what they claimed were the IDs of relatives of French soldiers involved in operations against ISIS, as well as several threats and warnings. "Soldiers of France, stay away from the Islamic State!" AFP reports one message said. "You have the chance to save your families, take advantage of it. The CyberCaliphate continues its cyberjihad against the enemies of Islamic State."
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Catherine Garcia has worked as a senior writer at The Week since 2014. Her writing and reporting have appeared in Entertainment Weekly, The New York Times, Wirecutter, NBC News and "The Book of Jezebel," among others. She's a graduate of the University of Redlands and the Columbia University Graduate School of Journalism.
