Venezuelan embassy officials in Argentina condemned Thursday’s cyber attack after hackers commandeered the ministry’s website and published a statement in support of the self-declared “interim president,” Juan Guaido.
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“We denounce the criminal policy of hacking and intervention of the Venezuelan embassy web portals in several countries. We have decided to suspend the publication of information online until the security conditions are restored,” the embassy wrote on Twitter.
According to reports, around noon Thursday, Venezuelan web coordinators were locked out of the site from both the Brazilian and Argentine embassy locations.
A message from the hacker replaced the site’s homepage which read: Venezuelan Compatriots, I, Juan Jose Valero, Charge d'Affaires in the Republic of Argentina, today in response to the decisions of other Venezuelan diplomats in the region, I recognize the National Assembly as the only legitimate body of our Republic of Venezuela and its president Juan Guaido."
The statement was quickly taken down and tweets from embassy officials clarified the ministry's position.
“Our diplomatic team ratifies its absolute loyalty to President Nicolas Maduro and its rejection of these illegal actions that only express the lack of support for the new Imperial onslaught we will win,” one tweet said.
Officials continued on to denounce the event as an international cybercrime which “seeks to continue the attacks on the Bolivarian Republic of Venezuela, boycotting diplomatic services to citizens outside the country.”
Guaido, a lawmaker and head of the opposition’s National Assembly- which has been held in contempt of the Supreme Court since 2016- attempted a coup d'etat on Jan. 23, after which he proceeded to proclaim himself “interim president.”
The United States was among the first nations to recognize the unconstitutional move. Other nations have hesitated, demanding instead that Maduro leave his administration in favor of a new election.