Iranian cyber attackers hit budget’s bottom line – US Treasury strikes back

TLDR:

• The U.S. Treasury Department sanctioned two firms and four individuals tied to cyber attacks on behalf of the Iranian Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps Cyber Electronic Command.
• The individuals targeted U.S. companies and government entities through cyber operations, including spear-phishing and malware attacks.

The U.S. Treasury Department’s Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) sanctioned Mehrsam Andisheh Saz Nik (MASN) and Dadeh Afzar Arman (DAA), as well as Alireza Shafie Nasab, Reza Kazemifar Rahman, Hossein Mohammad Harooni, and Komeil Baradaran Salmani for their involvement in malicious cyber activities. The individuals were charged with conspiracy to commit computer fraud, conspiracy to commit wire fraud, wire fraud, and aggravated identity theft. The coordinated hacking spree targeted private sector defense contractors and government entities, compromising over 200,000 employee accounts. The U.S. Department of Justice also unsealed an indictment against the four defendants for orchestrating cyber attacks targeting U.S. government and private entities. Overall, the sanctions and indictments underscore the grave threat posed by criminal activity originating from Iran to America’s national security and economic stability.