Skip to main content Tech Radar Pro Tech Radar Gaming Tech Radar Pro TechRadar the business technology experts Search TechRadar View Profile België (Nederlands) Deutschland North America US (English) Australasia New Zealand Expert Insights Website builders Web hosting Best web hosting Best website builder Best office chairs Expert Insights "Downfall" of 4chan? Infamous site hit with alleged hack as attackers cause major outage, leak source code Sead Fadilpašić 16 April 2025 4chan site is still offline following incident When you purchase through links on our site, we may earn an affiliate commission. Here’s how it works. (Image credit: TheDigitalArtist / Pixabay) Notorious online forum 4chan is currently offline A hacker reportedly took the site offline and leaked sensitive data "Rival" imageboard users are celebrating Infamous anonymous imageboard 4chan has reportedly been hacked and taken offline, with the website unable to load. A hacker was apparently dwelling on 4chan’s systems “for over a year” before deciding to pull the trigger. The threat actor leaked a few screenshots to prove the website was hacked, and on those screenshots it showed the site’s alleged backend, source code, and banning templates. Furthermore, the hacker leaked a list of 4chan moderators and janitors, essentially the website’s operators. You may like Global police operation takes down major cybercrime and hacking forums X is back – here's what we know about the 'massive cyberattack' that caused Twitter to go down multiple times Monitor your credit score with TransUnion starting at $29.95/month TransUnion is a credit monitoring service that helps you stay on top of your financial health. With real-time alerts, credit score tracking, and identity theft protection, it ensures you never miss important changes. You'll benefit from a customizable online interface with clear insights into your credit profile. Businesses also benefit from TransUnion’s advanced risk assessment tools. Preferred partner (What does this mean?) Praising the downfall 4chan is one of the world’s most popular anonymous imageboards. It is a forum where users cannot register an account, and in which threads disappear after a while (unless archived, which only happens in certain situations). It gained notoriety in the past when its users rallied to conduct “raids” - often promoting fascism, racism, and other destructive ideologies - “for the lulz” (for fun). Memes like Pepe the Frog, Pedo Bear, the Anonymous Guy Fawkes mask, and many other trends, originated on 4chan. The “raids” included flooding live streams, massive multiplayer games and chat platforms, other forums, and similar. The forum and its users also had their “rivals”, mostly ebaumsworld (to which they always tried to shift the blame during the raids), and 8chan. On social media, users of these boards are now gloating and praising 4chan’s “downfall”. TechCrunch spoke to one of the janitors, who said the imageboard suffered hacks and DDoS attacks in the past, but stressed that this one might be particularly dangerous since it would seem the hacker has full control over the site. Are you a pro? Subscribe to our newsletter Sign up to the TechRadar Pro newsletter to get all the top news, opinion, features and guidance your business needs to succeed! Contact me with news and offers from other Future brandsReceive email from us on behalf of our trusted partners or sponsorsBy submitting your information you agree to the Terms & Conditions and Privacy Policy and are aged 16 or over. “I’ve been most concerned with the leaked information, for obvious reasons,” said the janitor. “I’d wager that the fact that 4chan was effectively taken over by a hacker(s) is probably ‘worse’ than screenshots, at least from the perspective of the site’s continued operation.” They also told the publication that the stolen data was probably authentic. Whenever 4chan would go offline in the past, or whenever someone would threaten legal action against it, users would respond with a now-famous quote, which I’ll use here as well: “Nothing of value was lost.” Via TechCrunch You might also like Microsoft warns of a devious new RAT malware which can avoid detection with apparent ease Take a look at our guide to the best authenticator app We've rounded up the best password managers Sead Fadilpašić Social Links Navigation Sead is a seasoned freelance journalist based in Sarajevo, Bosnia and Herzegovina. He writes about IT (cloud, IoT, 5G, VPN) and cybersecurity (ransomware, data breaches, laws and regulations). In his career, spanning more than a decade, he’s written for numerous media outlets, including Al Jazeera Balkans. He’s also held several modules on content writing for Represent Communications. 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