Matt Drudge tweeted from his verified account about DDoS attacks on Drudge Report last night. According to another tweet from Drudge, the attack was coming from thousands of sources, none of which could be traced to Fort Meade, where NSA headquarters is located.
Drudge Report tweeted that the attack lasted 90 minutes and was linked to an International Business Times article with more details.
International Business Times also cited a tweet alleging that RT News (a Russian news site) was also under attack. This came just hours after the Obama administration announced it would retaliate against Russia for allegedly interfering in the 2016 election.
The connection between Russia and Drudge Report could be the fact that Drudge has been sharing and publicizing the widely retweeted jab at the Obama administration from the Russian Embassy in the UK. Their featured story shows the “Lame Duck” image from the infamous tweet and the headline reads “MOSCOW MOCKS OBAMA.”
This wouldn’t be the first time the United States used cyber warfare against those they perceived an enemy. It also wouldn’t be the first time they did something unconventional, like in the 2010 Stuxnet operation where the U.S. reportedly played AC/DC’s “Thunderstruck” at max volume on Iran’s nuclear workstations.
Sharyl Attkisson, an investigative journalist, replied to Drudge’s tweet implying that the recent push to reduce “fake news” and the pledge to counterattack Russia may have led to the cyber attack. There has been a significant push by the media, Facebook, and the Obama administration to limit “fake news,” even though some may say that liberals and the mainstream media have pushed more fake news than anyone.
@DRUDGE Maybe they think this is a proportional counterattack to Russia. After all they have decided @Drudge is Russian fake news, right?
— Sharyl Attkisson (@SharylAttkisson) December 30, 2016
This isn’t the first time that Drudge Report has been accused of being a Russian fake news proxy. The website PropOrNot has a list of sites that are allegedly active in echoing false Russian news stories. The Washington Post even posted an article listing PropOrNot as an expert regarding the spread of “fake news” during the election.
Whether Drudge is being attacked by U.S. entities or the attack is coming from another source – the connection is alarming and being noted by Drudge, hackers, and journalists. Given the suspicious timing of the attacks, not long after the Obama administration pledged retribution against Russia, everyone in interested in what is going on.
