Digital Content Observatory
A non-profit organization aiming to contribute to building a safe digital space
Ibn Al-Atheer Street, Al-Khalil Alley, Al-Farah Neighborhood, Fez – International Private School of Technology Institute
🔴 Digital Content Observatory’s Response to the Statement of the Urban Agency of Fez:
Cybersecurity is not a field for stubbornness… It requires dismissal, not justification
On June 3, 2025, the Digital Content Observatory received an official letter from the Urban Agency of Fez, via the management of Fez News, following the warning statement issued by the Observatory and published on the same site. The statement alerted the public to a serious breach of the institution’s official website (www.aufes.org), documenting thousands of illegal posts, some promoting drugs, sexual content, and gambling sites.
While the Observatory expresses deep astonishment at the response, which reflects complete denial of responsibility and a regrettable evasion of a technically and digitally established fact, it records the following for national public opinion and the competent authorities:
✅ First: The response was addressed to the wrong party and should have been directed to the Observatory, not to a newspaper
It is surprising that the agency’s management chose to address Fez News newspaper, while the statement was issued by a specialized and registered national observatory with legitimacy in digital security. The administration should have communicated directly with the Observatory to benefit from its technical data and expertise, rather than hastily issuing a defensive statement lacking basic institutional professionalism.
✅ Second: The site indeed contains thousands of hacked pages, with evidence
Browsing the site’s archive or reviewing search engine outputs and website archiving tools (Cache & Wayback Machine) reveals:
- Links promoting digital drugs;
- Pornographic content and gambling sites;
- Posts in foreign languages unrelated to the institution or its specialization.
Is this merely an “internal malfunction”? Or a complete absence of digital monitoring? Where are the security updates? Where is the maintenance and cybersecurity team?
✅ Third: Attempting to use Press Law against a cybersecurity warning reflects serious ignorance of the digital threat
The agency tried to invoke Article 115 of the Press and Publication Law against a specialized technical statement issued by a national reference in digital content protection. This behavior reveals grave ignorance of cybercrime nature and handling ethics, and a blatant attempt to muzzle voices concerned with digital security.
✅ Fourth: This response requires accountability, not justification
Given Morocco’s delicate national cybersecurity situation and increasing attacks on public institutions and digital infrastructure, such a response treating a real breach with frivolity and blind confidence is unacceptable.
Therefore, the Digital Content Observatory demands an internal administrative investigation, accountability for those who drafted and signed this response, and holds them directly responsible before higher authorities. It calls for strict administrative measures up to dismissal, to protect public service credibility and citizens’ trust in their digital state.
📢 The Observatory reiterates:
- Full adherence to its warning statement;
- Demand for an independent national investigation into the incident;
- Call for a detailed technical report from the supervising ministry;
- Warning that continued denial may expose other institutions to the same silent danger.
🛡️ Digital security is not a luxury… but a national defense wall
The Digital Content Observatory will continue its full role in monitoring and protecting the public digital space, without expecting thanks or yielding to pressure, because the nation’s safety begins with securing its information infrastructure.
Written in Fez,
📆 June 4, 2025
Digital Content Observatory
President: Ahmed Al-Namita Al-Baqali