Meta, the parent company of Facebook, Instagram, and WhatsApp, has recently thwarted a series of cyberattacks on its messaging platform. The company revealed that its security teams blocked a cluster of WhatsApp accounts linked to Iranian hackers who were masquerading as tech support agents.
On August 23, Meta disclosed that these accounts were part of a larger hacking group associated with Iran. This group had also attempted email phishing attacks against prominent US figures, including President Joe Biden, Vice President Kamala Harris, former President Donald Trump, and various political and diplomatic officials.
Meta stated that there is no evidence that the targeted WhatsApp accounts were successfully breached. However, the company has informed law enforcement and other tech firms about the threats.
The recent revelations come after the US government accused Iran of attempting to interfere with the upcoming presidential elections. On August 19, the Office of the Director of National Intelligence, the FBI, and the Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency (CISA) released a joint statement highlighting Iran’s increased efforts to influence the US electoral process. The statement noted that Iran perceives this election cycle as crucial to its national security interests, leading to heightened cyber activities and influence operations.
Meta’s statement also detailed that the Iranian hackers had attempted to target individuals in multiple countries, including Israel, Palestine, Iran, the US, and the UK. They posed as technical support for major tech companies like AOL, Google, Yahoo, and Microsoft to trick users into revealing sensitive information, such as passwords.
The tech giant identified these malicious activities as part of a broader campaign by APT42 (also known as UNC788 and Mint Sandstorm), an Iranian threat actor known for using basic phishing tactics to compromise online accounts. Meta had previously shared threat intelligence about APT42’s activities targeting various regions, including West Asia and the US, focusing on military personnel, dissidents, human rights activists, and academics.
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