Israel-linked hackers target Iran’s financial system in cyberwar
▼ Summary
– Predatory Sparrow, an Israel-linked hacker group, has executed highly disruptive cyberattacks in Iran, including disabling gas station payments and setting a steel mill on fire.
– The group recently targeted Iranian crypto exchange Nobitex, destroying over $90 million in assets, accusing it of enabling sanctions violations and terrorist financing.
– Predatory Sparrow operates under the Farsi name Gonjeshke Darande to appear as a local hacktivist organization.
– The hackers also attacked Iran’s Sepah bank, claiming to have destroyed all its data due to its ties with Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps.
– The group warns that associating with Iran’s sanctions-evasion and terrorism-financing infrastructure poses financial risks.
Israel-linked cyber operatives have escalated their digital warfare against Iran, launching precision strikes against the country’s financial infrastructure. The hacker collective Predatory Sparrow, which operates under the Farsi alias Gonjeshke Darande, has claimed responsibility for crippling attacks on Iranian cryptocurrency platforms and banking systems. Their latest operation targeted Nobitex, a major Iranian crypto exchange, wiping out over $90 million in digital assets, an unusual tactic where funds were deliberately destroyed rather than stolen.
Security analysts tracking the group’s activities confirm this marks a strategic shift in cyber warfare tactics. Unlike typical financially motivated hacks, these attacks appear designed to disrupt Iran’s economic channels tied to alleged sanctions evasion and militant financing. In a public statement on social media, the hackers accused Nobitex of serving as a financial conduit for the Iranian government, warning others against involvement with entities linked to “regime terror financing.”
Hours earlier, the same group breached systems at Sepah Bank, one of Iran’s largest financial institutions. They leaked documents purportedly showing ties between the bank and the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps, while boasting of erasing critical data. The message accompanying the attack carried a blunt warning: collaboration with Iran’s military and nuclear programs could prove financially disastrous.
This isn’t Predatory Sparrow’s first high-profile cyber assault. Previous operations disrupted fuel distribution networks and even caused physical damage at an Iranian steel plant. Experts suggest these incidents reflect a broader geopolitical conflict playing out in cyberspace, where digital strikes serve as both retaliation and deterrence. With tensions between Israel and Iran escalating, the financial sector may face further disruptions as hacktivists and state-backed groups intensify their campaigns.
The long-term impact remains uncertain, but one thing is clear: as cyber capabilities evolve, so too does their potential to reshape economic and political confrontations. Financial institutions entangled in international disputes now find themselves on the front lines of a new kind of warfare, one where data breaches can carry the weight of economic sanctions.
(Source: Ars Technica)
