Catalonia Independence Ballot Hit by Cyber Attacks

Catalan government computer systems were attacked by professional-style hackers during the disputed independence vote on Nov. 9, putting basic services at risk, Regional President Artur Mas said.

The attacks began the day before the ballot and peaked as 2.3 million Catalans went to the polls, with information requests to regional-government computers increasing 60,000-fold, Mas, 58, said at a press conference in Barcelona today. The attacks put emergency services and the delivery of medical prescriptions at risk, he said.