The Cuban independent digital outlet, El Toque, reported on Saturday that it is currently enduring a significant distributed denial-of-service (DDoS) attack, which began at 3:10 PM Cuban time and appears to originate primarily from Chinese servers.
According to the outlet, their mitigation systems successfully blocked over 124 million malicious requests in under three hours, with peak rates of 8.1 million requests in five-minute intervals. The protection system they employ recorded 122.36 million requests being blocked directly, with an additional 2.49 million being verified out of a total of 124.85 million.
“We are once again under digital attack,” the outlet stated in their announcement, noting that “the attack remains active but is currently being contained,” although users attempting to access the platform may experience temporary disruptions.
Persistent Digital Aggression
El Toque categorized the incident as part of a "sustained pattern of digital aggression" targeting their platform and other independent Cuban media outlets.
The most recent similar event occurred on December 17, 2025, just a day before Cuba's Central Bank announced its new official floating exchange rate. At that time, the outlet’s director, José Jasán Nieves, directly accused the Cuban government of orchestrating the attack. Sandro Castro, Fidel Castro's grandson, even celebrated that episode publicly, claiming, "We have defeated El Toque."
Following that attack, the website remained blocked in Cuba until at least February 15, 2026, according to data from the Open Observatory of Network Interference (OONI).
Standing Firm Against Censorship
El Toque is renowned for publishing the Representative Market Rate Index (TRMI), a key indicator of the informal exchange rate in Cuba, which the regime has labeled as "financial terrorism." Díaz-Canel has publicly joined the attacks against the outlet, with a systematic campaign that includes website blockades, hacking attempts, and state-led smear campaigns.
In June 2026, Nieves was awarded the Knight International Journalism Award specifically for the TRMI and "La Travesía," a database of missing Cuban migrants. This recognition highlights the international impact of the outlet's work, despite pressure from the regime.
Currently, at least 23 independent Cuban media websites remain blocked on the island, according to Freedom House and Digital Guardians. In 2025, there were 768 recorded violations of press freedom in Cuba, a 54.7% increase from 2024, as reported by the Cuban Institute for Freedom of Expression and Press (ICLEP).
El Toque announced plans to document the recent Saturday attack for submission to international press freedom organizations, and reaffirmed its stance against censorship: "Just like before, we will overcome this new attempt to silence us." The statement concluded with a commitment to their audience: "Our dedication to providing information remains steadfast."
Key Details About the Digital Attack on El Toque
What type of attack did El Toque experience?
El Toque experienced a distributed denial-of-service (DDoS) attack of large scale.
Where did the attack originate?
The attack primarily originated from servers located in China.
How is El Toque responding to this attack?
El Toque is documenting the attack to report it to international organizations defending press freedom and remains committed to continuing their work.