Skip to main content

U.S. Charges Iranians For Global Cyber Attacks

The attack pilfered more than 31 terabytes of academic data and intellectual property.
                  U.S. Deputy Attorney General Rod Rosenstein speaks at a news conference with other law enforcement officials at the Justice D
WASHINGTON (Reuters) - The United States on Friday charged nine Iranians and an Iranian company with attempting to hack into hundreds of U.S. and international universities, dozens of companies and parts of the U.S. government on behalf of the Tehran government.
The cyber attack pilfered more than 31 terabytes of academic data and intellectual property from 144 U.S. universities and 176 universities in 21 foreign countries, the U.S. Department of Justice said in a statement.
The U.S. Treasury Department said on its website that it was placing sanctions on those accused and the Mabna Institute, a company described by U.S. prosecutors as designed to help Iranian research organizations steal information.
“These defendants are now fugitives of justice,” U.S. Deputy Attorney General Rod Rosenstein said at a press conference, warning that they may face extradition in more than 100 countries if they travel outside of Iran.
The action is the fourth time in the past few months that the administration of U.S. President Donald Trump has blamed a foreign government for major cyber attacks, a practice that was relatively rare under the Obama administration.
The campaign targeted the email accounts of more than 100,000 professors worldwide and compromised about 8,000 of them, the Justice Department said, describing the conspiracy as one of the largest state-sponsored hacking sprees prosecuted.
Hackers also targeted the U.S. Labor Department, the U.S. Federal Energy Regulatory Commission and the United Nations, prosecutors said.
Last week, the administration accused the Russian government of cyber attacks stretching back at least two years that targeted the U.S. power grid. Washington imposed new sanctions on 19 Russians and five groups, including Moscow’s intelligence services, for meddling in the 2016 U.S. presidential election and other cyber attacks.
The Obama administration in 2016 indicted seven Iranians for distributed-denial-of-service attacks on dozens of U.S. banks and for trying to shut down a New York dam. Those hackers were also accused of working on behalf of Iran’s government.
On Friday, the Treasury department named the Iran-based Mabna Institute and Behzad Mesri, also known as “Skote Vahshat,” who was charged in 2017 with hacking cable TV network HBO.

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Parents charged in horrific murder of their 4-year-old daughter who was boiled alive on New Year's day

                      A Michigan couple has been charged with one of the most heinous murders that is being referred to as the "worst child death case" ever after their 4-year-old daughter died in a "scalding bath" in Michigan. Candice Diaz, 24, and Brad Fields, 28, were charged with murder, torture, and child abuse and both denied bail. Gabrielle died on New Year's Day after living a life filled with abuse. Doctors say she suffered multiple injuries, including severe burns on her limbs after she was in a bath with scalding hot water. A medical practitioner, who examined Gabrielle Barrett's body, described the alleged murder as the "worst child death case" in 27 years of his career, according to a court document. The document also allegedly states that the four-year-old was burned so badly that her big toe fell off, and police found melted skin in the drain. Gabrielle's mother, Diaz, and her partner, Fi...
Post a Comment
Read more

Army arrest 5 militias in Nasarawa State, recover arms

Troops of the 177 Guards Battalion of the Nigerian Army have arrested five suspected militias at Ugyi town in Toto Local Government Area of Nasarawa state. According to a statement issued by Brig.-Gen Texas Chukwu, army spokesman, the troops also recovered some arms from the militias during a raid. Chukwu also said the troops recovered one Daihatsu SUV jeep, seven motorcycles, six dane guns and one locally made revolver pistol. Other items are four 9mm rounds of ammunition and a cartridge, twenty six daggers and a list containing phone numbers, one sword and forty pieces of customised regalia. He also said the troops recovered the sum of N1, 205 as well as assorted charms. Chukwu said preliminary investigation was ongoing, adding they would be handed over to the appropriate authority on completion of the investigation.   I found this interesting
Post a Comment
Read more

Masks will in future be mandatory in closed markets

                                     The period of validity of the Corona Ordinance has been extended to 30 September in Württemberg.  In the future, the mask requirement will also apply to markets under certain conditions. Stuttgart - In  Baden-Württemberg  , the  mask requirement will  also  apply  to weekly and annual markets, provided that these take place in closed rooms.  The green-black state government informed on Wednesday about a corresponding change in the Corona regulation.  In addition, the requirement for masks in secondary schools after the summer holidays is now laid down in the regulation. Ordinance is due to enter into force on August 6th However, this should not apply in the classroom, but primarily in the hallways, school playgrounds, as well as in stairwells and toilets.  When visiting restaurants, swimming pools or hotels,...
Post a Comment
Read more