'Hacktivist' Group Targets North Carolina Websites in Protest of HB 2

The collective known as Anonymous says it shut down several North Carolina government websites; however, some are back up and working.

The computer-hacking activist collective known as Anonymous claims to have shut down several North Carolina government websites in protest of the state’s anti-LGBT law, House Bill 2.

The organization announced its action in a series of tweets over the weekend and today, tagging the group's name, #OpLGBT, in several posts:

“Tango down,” according to the Urban Dictionary, is a term used by the military when a terrorist has been eliminated.

However, while many of those domains the tweets listed remain inaccessible, some major sites, such as those of the governor and the state legislature, are online and functioning. “All of our state government websites are operating as normal,” a spokesman told CNN Money.

Anonymous and other “hacktivists” intend to keep up the pressure on the state over HB 2, which invalidates all LGBT-inclusive municipal antidiscrimination laws, prevents cities and counties from enacting new ones, and bars transgender people from using the restrooms and locker rooms, in government buildings, that match their gender identity.

“We ask you to reverse the bathroom law or expect more,” CNN Money quoted another Twitter user in a message directed at Gov. Pat McCrory; the original tweet is now inaccessible.

The U.S. Secret Service and the FBI are investigating the postings, CNN Money adds.