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The United States Department of Justice has unsealed indictments against three Iranians and one Iranian company for their involvement in a massive hacking campaign that targeted over 100 U.S. companies and government agencies.
The indictment, unsealed today, charges Iranians Mansour Ahmadi, aka Mansur Ahmadi, 34; Ahmad Khatibi Aghda, aka Ahmad Khatibi, 45; and Amir Hossein Nickaein Ravari, aka Amir Hossein Nikaeen, aka Amir Hossein Nickaein, aka Amir Nikayin, 30, with computer hacking, economic espionage, and other crimes.
According to the indictment, the defendants conducted a years-long campaign of cyber attacks that stole sensitive information from over 100 victims, including universities, private companies, and government agencies.
The stolen information included research and development data, proprietary information, and sensitive academic data. The defendants then sold the stolen information to Iranian clients for profit.
“The scale and scope of the cyber intrusions perpetrated by the defendants are staggering and offensive to all who respect the rule of law and basic ethical behaviour,” said Acting Assistant Attorney General John P. Cronan.
“This case should serve as a wake-up call to all companies and organizations doing business in today’s interconnected world that they are constant targets of adversaries, like Iran, that are willing and able to invest significant time and resources to conduct extensive cyber campaigns designed to steal their valuable data.”
The indictment alleges that the defendants used various methods to access their victim’s systems, including phishing emails, password spraying, and exploiting vulnerabilities.
The defendants are also accused of launching a distributed denial of service (DDoS) attack against a U.S. government agency in 2016.
If convicted, the defendants face significant prison sentences and hefty fines.
This is not the first time that the U.S. has charged Iranians with conducting cyber attacks against American targets. In March of this year, the U.S. charged nine Iranians with conducting a series of cyber attacks against U.S. financial institutions and a movie studio.
The Iranian government has denied involvement in the hacking campaign and accused the U.S. of fabricating the charges.
This case highlights the growing threat of cyber attacks from nation-states like Iran. These hackers are sophisticated and well-funded, constantly targeting American companies and institutions to steal valuable data. It is essential that companies take steps to protect themselves from these attacks and that they report any suspicious activity to the authorities.
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