Cyber Crossfire: Hacktivists Escalate India-Pakistan Tensions in Digital Battlefield

As missile strikes reignite geopolitical tensions between India and Pakistan, the cyber domain is quickly becoming a second front line—one fueled by hacktivist allegiances, ideological retaliation, and digital disruption.

Within 24 hours of India’s May 7 strikes on targets it described as “terrorist infrastructure” in Pakistan and the disputed Kashmir region, coordinated cyberattacks erupted across national borders. According to a new alert issued by cybersecurity firm Radware, pro-Muslim and pro-Palestinian hacktivist groups unleashed a wave of distributed denial-of-service (DDoS) attacks targeting Indian organizations, particularly government institutions.

“The velocity and coordination of these campaigns show a pattern we’ve come to associate with ideological cyber militancy,” said Pascal Geenens, Director of Threat Intelligence at Radware. “These groups are exploiting geopolitical flashpoints to launch asymmetric cyber warfare—not for financial gain, but for political messaging.”

Among the most active groups: AnonSec, Keymous+, Mr Hamza, Arabian Hosts, and Anonymous VNLBN. Iranian-linked Vulture and regional players like Islamic Hacker Army and Red Wolf Cyber also claimed responsibility for disrupting Indian digital infrastructure.

Radware’s telemetry suggests more than three-quarters of these initial DDoS attacks were directed at Indian government websites. These ranged from classic volumetric attacks to more sophisticated application-layer (Web DDoS) assaults using botnets and off-the-shelf tools. Some groups claimed to leak stolen data or deface websites, though the authenticity of these claims remains unverified.

In response, New Delhi reportedly geo-fenced key financial websites including the National Stock Exchange and the Bombay Stock Exchange, temporarily blocking foreign IPs as a “protective measure.” It’s an unusual but increasingly common tactic for countries anticipating coordinated cyber offensives.

But this isn’t a one-sided digital war. Indian-aligned hacktivist collectives—including Indian Cyber Force, Cryptojackers of India, Ghost Force, and Dex4o4—are now ramping up counterattacks targeting Pakistani web infrastructure. The cycle of retaliation mirrors patterns seen in previous regional conflicts where cyberattacks run parallel to kinetic escalations.

“The concern isn’t just the immediate disruption of services,” Geenens warned. “It’s the long-term erosion of digital trust. When critical systems become pawns in hacktivist wars, everyone—from civilians to financial markets—becomes collateral.”

This isn’t the first time political fault lines have spilled into cyberspace, but the alignment of global causes—such as pro-Palestinian solidarity with anti-India cyber groups—has intensified the threat surface. Analysts warn that as tensions escalate offline, so too will the cyber retaliation—potentially involving more sophisticated actors or state-sponsored proxies.

As of now, the attacks appear to remain within the bounds of hacktivist tactics. But experts caution that a blurred line between independent operatives and state-aligned groups means these skirmishes could quickly spiral into more destructive campaigns targeting critical infrastructure.

For now, the cyber crossfire continues—and both sides are bracing for a wider digital escalation.