Gambiaj.com – (DAKAR, Senegal) – Senegal’s tax administration headquarters is currently at a standstill due to a massive cyberattack, raising urgent questions about the priorities of the country’s Division Spéciale de la Cybersécurité (DSC).
While hackers have now paralyzed the Direction Générale des Impôts et Domaines (DGID) for over a week, the DSC is accused of focusing its energy on silencing journalists, activists, and political critics rather than protecting state infrastructure.
According to specialist outlet Sikafinance, cybercriminals—believed to be operating from Europe—have infiltrated DGID’s systems, shutting down essential tax collection and payment software.
The hackers are reportedly demanding a ransom of about €10 million (nearly 6.5 billion CFA francs) to release the system.
The impact is devastating. For over a week, government revenues and payments have been blocked, crippling the fiscal engine of the state.
Officials cannot access tax management tools, meaning collections are halted and budgetary disbursements frozen. To underscore their control, the attackers have even leaked internal DGID data, sparking fears over taxpayer confidentiality.
The DGID confirmed the paralysis in a press statement, describing the shutdown as linked to a “technical problem” while assuring the public that preventive security measures had been activated.
It said manual operations at physical counters remain possible, though the disruption to online services continues to bite.
But the episode has reignited debate over the role of the DSC. Initially created to defend the nation against cyberthreats, it has increasingly become, critics argue, the regime’s instrument for muzzling dissent.
Journalists, activists, and opposition voices report heightened surveillance, intimidation, and arrests under the pretext of cybercrime, while state institutions like the DGID remain defenseless against real hackers.
“This is the clearest proof that the DSC has lost its way,” said one Dakar-based analyst. “Instead of protecting Senegal’s financial backbone, it has been turned into a political police force. Now the entire country is paying the price.”
With the attack ongoing, the government faces a delicate choice: negotiate with the hackers or risk further financial paralysis.
Meanwhile, public frustration mounts, not only at the cybercriminals holding the DGID hostage but also at a security apparatus seen as prioritizing regime survival over national resilience.
