Iranian hackers attack senior US and Israeli medical researchers
The American publication "The Hill" reported that Iranian hackers affiliated with the Islamic Republic of Iran targeted dozens of senior American and Israeli researchers four months ago.
The report, which was published on Wednesday, April 1, adds that research by cybersecurity group Proofpoint shows that two groups of Iranian hackers, known as "Phosphory" and "Melos Kitten," targeted 25 senior researchers and professionals from the United States and Israel in the fields of genetics, neurology, and oncology in December last year.
These hacking groups have attempted to access their personal documents by sending misleading emails that direct researchers to a fake site that looks like a Microsoft website.
The report did not specify whether Iranian hackers were successful in their operation, but it notes that attacks to access medical information are not a new issue, and cybersecurity group Proofpoint had previously reported efforts by hackers affiliated with the Revolutionary Guard and some other countries, such as China, to target researchers, hospitals, etc. in the midst of the coronavirus crisis.
Reuters and three cybersecurity researchers reported in May last year that publicly available internet archives showed that hackers linked to Iran had attempted to break into the accounts of employees of the American pharmaceutical company Gilead.
The American company Gilead is the manufacturer of a drug called Remdesivir. US health officials have said the drug has shown "clear evidence" of improving the condition of patients with Covid-19.
The Hill magazine writes that the Phosphorus group is one of the highly professional hackers supported by the Islamic Republic that has been active in recent years.
Microsoft reported last year that the group had cyberattacked about a hundred high-profile guests at the Munich Security Conference.
In 2019, Microsoft also announced a cyber attack on hundreds of the company's users by the "Phosphory" group.
In October 2019, the computer company Microsoft announced that the Phosphorus group had carried out attacks against a US presidential election campaign (in 2016).
Microsoft said it had discovered "extensive" cyber activities by these hackers, which, in addition to the election campaign, targeted current and former US government officials, journalists active in international politics, and prominent Iranians living abroad.
Previously, the Associated Press reported that the "Kitten Melos" group had attempted to hack into the personal emails of "several officials" at the US Treasury Department.
Source: Radio Farda
