(UPDATED) Japanese video streaming site, Niconico, was down for many users during the holidays in a apparent Distributed Denial of Service (DDoS) cyberattack.
Dear Niconico Users,
As of 12/25/2017 (5:00pm JST), a network issue has reoccurred restricting user access to Niconico services. In order to resolve this issue, select connections outside of Japan have been temporarily disconnected. We will keep you updated regarding this issue
— Niconico English (@niconicoen) December 25, 2017
In response to the said attack, Niconico restricted overseas access to the website and for a few days was accessible only within Japan.
While we are not at a capacity to independently verify information that is in Japanese, ForgetfulSubs has provided translations of some of the online reactions coming in from Twitter.
It is believed the perpetrator of the attack goes by the Twitter handle @Darknessonion and based on the translations, the hacker has also targeted the official website of the North Korean government and plans to target other government websites of other unspecified countries.
Niconico is among the online platforms where users of the VOCALOID, UTAU and other emerging Japanese voice synthesizers upload and share their works.
Dear Niconico Users,
We sincerely appreciate your patience.
As of Wednesday 12/27/2017 (5:23 pm JST), select connections outside of Japan have been restored.*Please note that should another network issue occur, connections may again be disconnected.https://t.co/tLICn3LteQ
— Niconico English (@niconicoen) December 27, 2017
NOOO NOT AT RIN & LEN’S 10TH ANNIVERSARY T___T
Yeah.. We’re going to rely on YouTube for now. At least, some producers have also been uploading there too.