Security News

Iran's cyber operations in Israel a potential prelude to US election interference
2024-02-07 16:30

Iran's anti-Israel cyber operations are providing a window into the techniques the country may deploy in the run-up to the 2024 US Presidential elections, Microsoft says. An analysis of Iran's activity, published by Microsoft Threat Analysis Center today, concluded that Iran may again target US elections as it did in 2020, using more sophisticated techniques from a wealth of different groups.

Hacktivists boast: We shut down Iran's gas pumps today
2023-12-18 22:45

Hacktivists reportedly disrupted services at about 70 percent of Iran's gas stations in a politically motivated cyberattack. Iran's oil minister Javad Owji confirmed on Monday the IT systems of the nation's petrol stations had been attacked as Iranian media told of long queues at the pumps and traffic jams - particularly in Tehran - as folks tried and failed to fill up.

Iran-Linked Imperial Kitten Cyber Group Targeting Middle East's Tech Sectors
2023-11-10 07:11

A group with links to Iran targeted transportation, logistics, and technology sectors in the Middle East, including Israel, in October 2023 amid a surge in Iranian cyber activity since the onset of the Israel-Hamas war. The attacks have been attributed by CrowdStrike to a threat actor it tracks under the name Imperial Kitten, and which is also known as Crimson Sandstorm, TA456, Tortoiseshell, and Yellow Liderc.

Iran's MuddyWater Targets Israel in New Spear-Phishing Cyber Campaign
2023-11-02 09:21

The Iranian nation-state actor known as MuddyWater has been linked to a new spear-phishing campaign targeting two Israeli entities to ultimately deploy a legitimate remote administration tool from...

Iran-Linked OilRig Targets Middle East Governments in 8-Month Cyber Campaign
2023-10-19 10:15

The Iran-linked OilRig threat actor targeted an unnamed Middle East government between February and September 2023 as part of an eight-month-long campaign. The attack led to the theft of files and...

From MuddyC3 to PhonyC2: Iran's MuddyWater Evolves with a New Cyber Weapon
2023-06-29 16:01

The Iranian state-sponsored group dubbed MuddyWater has been attributed to a previously unseen command-and-control framework called PhonyC2 that's been put to use by the actor since 2021. "MuddyWater is continuously updating the PhonyC2 framework and changing TTPs to avoid detection."

Iran-Based Hackers Caught Carrying Out Destructive Attacks Under Ransomware Guise
2023-04-08 07:19

The Iranian nation-state group known as MuddyWater has been observed carrying out destructive attacks on hybrid environments under the guise of a ransomware operation. That's according to new findings from the Microsoft Threat Intelligence team, which discovered the threat actor targeting both on-premises and cloud infrastructures in partnership with another emerging activity cluster dubbed DEV-1084.

Iran crew stole Charlie Hebdo database, says Microsoft
2023-02-04 08:45

Microsoft believes the gang who boasted it had stolen and leaked more than 200,000 Charlie Hebdo subscribers' personal information is none other than a Tehran-backed gang. On January 4, a previously unknown cyber-crime group that called itself Holy Souls claimed to have stolen a Charlie Hebdo database containing 230,000 customers' names, email addresses, phone numbers, addresses, and financial information, and offered it for sale for about $340,000.

UK Cyber Security Centre's scary new story: One phish, two phish, Russia phish, Iran phish
2023-01-27 05:32

The NSCS has attributed the campaigns to a Russia-based group called SEABORGIUM and the Iran-based TA453 group, also known as APT42. The threat groups target individuals working in academia, defence, government, non-government organisations, and think-tanks.

Iran-linked Charming Kitten espionage gang bares claws to pollies, power orgs
2022-12-15 02:35

An Iranian cyber espionage gang with ties to the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps has learned new methods and phishing techniques, and aimed them at a wider set of targets - including politicians, government officials, critical infrastructure and medical researchers - according to email security vendor Proofpoint. Over the past two years, the threat actor group that Proofpoint's researchers track as TA453 has branched out from its usual victims - academics, researchers, diplomats, dissidents, journalists and human rights workers - and adopted new means of attack.