Downed Israeli Websites Were Totally Not Hacked

Israeli officials are blaming a broad technical malfunction for downed national defense, domestic intelligence and spy agency websites on Sunday. This comes just three days after what appeared to be a threat from the hacking collective Anonymous over the Israeli Defense Forces' seizing a Gaza-bound flotilla. The two boats, from Canada and Ireland, were defying Israel's maritime barrier to the Palestinian territory when they were intercepted in international waters. Together, they were carrying nearly 30 pro-Palestinian activists, crew and journalists. Both activist sympathizers and the Israeli government took to Twitter soon after the incident, donning #FreedomWaves and #provacatilla, respectively, to clarify and quibble over their competing narratives.

No violence or injuries were reported after the IDF boarded the vessels and ordered each to make way for Israel's port of Ashdod. But with the 2010 Gaza flotilla raid still fresh in the minds of many, Friday’s episode was enough to set off Anonymous, or at least somebody claiming loose affiliation with the group.

Whoever it was posted a warning to YouTube accusing Israel of "piracy on the high seas." If the Jewish state continues "blocking humanitarian vessels to Gaza," the threat drones on, "or repeat the dreadful actions of May 21, 2010, against any Gaza Freedom Flotillas then you will leave us no choice but to strike back." The video’s pretty polished and uses that monotone, digitized voice filter and everything. At just over two minutes, it feels sort of legit.

Which brings us back to the downed sites – of the IDF, the Interior Ministry, Shin Bet (Israeli Security Agency) and Mossad intel services, and a military rep, among others – and a statement from Israeli government saying this "was not a cyber attack."

Maybe it wasn’t. There's no immediate telling whether the video was in fact posted by Anonymous or affiliates, and there doesn't yet appear to be anyone or any one group owning up to hacks. But remember that Sunday’s glitches also came after top Israeli leaders spent all last week answering and evading questions that they’re once again pressing for a hit on Natanz, one of two Iranian nuclear enrichment facilities probably targeted by the Stuxnet worm.

Iran, of course, has been grooming a massive cyber army since the fallout over that most sophisticated digital warhead.

If this was a bit of nation-state cyber warring, Iran would only be further distancing itself from, oh, everybody. But say the outages were hacktivist driven. Anonymous, in a moment of unprecedented global growth that may only have Time Warner (they make those Guy Fawkes masks) laughing all the way to the bank, will find itself in an almost precarious position.

Being decentralized, anyone can fly the group colors, and thus blow endless smoke, which seems to be happening more and more lately. Another day, another threat: Despite shoddy initial claims, the group didn't dynamite Facebook over the weekend, nor have they brought down the New York Stock Exchange or Fox News sites, as various tweets recently hinted at. And that awkward staredown with the Zetas drug gangsters? Looks like that one ended in a truce. How Anonymous manages to stave off hangers-on and the allure of being easily co-opted will determine its fate as a formidable, shadowy force for global good.

Meanwhile, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu is calling on Yoram Cohen, chief of Shin Bet, to investigate word of “Israel’s preparations for a military offensive” on Iran's nuclear capabilities leaking to the press. And at the time of this writing, all the affected websites (save Shin Bet, oddly enough) are back online.

Yep – "technical malfunction." Nothing to see here.

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Reach this writer at brian@motherboard.tv.