Security News > 2022 > May > A YouTuber is promoting DDoS attacks on Russia — how legal is this?
More recently, Russian hacktivist group "Killnet" has launched DDoS attacks on Romanian government sites.
Conducting DDoS attacks is a criminal offense in most jurisdictions.
UK's Computer Misuse Act of 1990 outlaws DDoS attacks as well.
These words are not taken lightly, as the US Department of Justice has sentenced numerous people for conducting DDoS attacks in the past, including attacks against gamers, using IoT devices to conduct attacks, and for running DDoS services.
"Hacktivists have been anonymously promoting and educating members on how to use DDoS attack tools in the darker corners of YouTube, but an influencer with over 250k subscribers posting a professionally edited video is bringing hacktivism into a new era," Geenens told BleepingComputer in an email.
"Rules are being rewritten. Is DDoS a crime? A word of caution. Depending on the perspective, DDoS will be considered and prosecuted as a crime."