Cyber Incident Victim: Government of Iceland
Date:
Nov 2015
Location:
Iceland
Summary
Anonymous conducted a DDoS attack under #OpWhales, disrupting nearly all Icelandic government websites for approximately 13 hours to protest commercial whaling, specifically targeting endangered fin whales. The hacktivists also attacked hb Grandi, a company involved in fin whale hunting, and spammed parliament members opposing whaling practices. The group vowed to continue operations until whaling ceased, citing international conservation bans. This aligned with prior Anonymous campaigns against animal exploitation, including previous attacks on Japanese airport sites over dolphin slaughter.
| CIA Posture | Motives | Tactics, Techniques & Procedures |
|---|---|---|
| Available to members | 2 motives | 1 technique |
| Threat Actor | Type | Location |
|---|---|---|
| 1 actor | Available to members | Available to members |
Description
On November 27, 2015, the hacktivist group Anonymous initiated a distributed denial-of-service (DDoS) attack campaign designated #OpWhales against Icelandic government digital infrastructure. The operation commenced at night, targeting nearly all ministerial websites simultaneously. According to Icelandic media outlet RUV, the attacks rendered government sites inaccessible for approximately 13 continuous hours, with only the Ministry of Welfare's website remaining operational throughout the incident. Technical restoration efforts succeeded in bringing affected systems back online within the same attack window. Anonymous supplemented the cyber campaign with a video statement declaring this initial disruption as merely the opening phase of sustained operations, explicitly linking future actions to Iceland's cessation of whaling activities. The group simultaneously extended their targeting beyond governmental entities to include hb Grandi, a commercial whaling company identified as instrumental in fin whale hunting operations.
The attacks coincided with coordinated social media activity under the #OpWhales hashtag, where Anonymous directed spam tweets at Icelandic politicians perceived as supporting whaling. Social Democrat MP Katrín Júlíusdóttir publicly acknowledged receiving voluminous anti-whaling messages, though she characterized them as redundant given her existing opposition to the practice. Anonymous specifically emphasized fin whale conservation in their communications, referencing the International Union for Conservation of Nature's endangered species designation and the International Whaling Commission's 1986 moratorium on commercial hunting of this species. This incident aligned with Anonymous' established pattern of cyber activism for animal rights causes, including prior operations against animal abuse websites and the October 2015 DDoS attacks on Japanese airport websites protesting dolphin hunts. The hacktivists framed the Iceland operation as part of a broader interspecies advocacy campaign while signaling intent for escalated actions pending policy changes regarding marine mammal harvesting.