Iran increased cyberattacks on Israel after Gaza war broke out: Report

Iran has increasedits cyberattacks on Israel since the start of the war in Gaza. However, Tehran earlier used to focus primarily on the United States before the conflict, a report by Microsoft stated on Tuesday (Oct 15).

“Following the outbreak of the Israel-Hamas war, Iran surged its cyber, influence, and cyber-enabled influence operations against Israel,” Microsoft said in an annual report.

The report stressed that from the start of the war on October 7 to July 2024, nearly half of the Iranian operations targeted Israeli companies.

“From October 7, 2023, to July 2024, nearly half of the Iranian operations Microsoft observed targeted Israeli companies,” the Microsoft Digital Defense Report stated.

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However, from July to October 2023, only 10 per cent of Iranian cyberattacks targeted Israel, while 35 per cent aimed at Americanentities and 20 per cent at the United Arab Emirates, according to the report.

With the aim of destabilising Israel, Iran has launched numerous social media operations since the war in Gaza began.

“Within two days of Hamas’ attack on Israel, Iran stood up several new influence operations,” Microsoft said.

According to the report, an account called "Tears of War" impersonated Israeli activists critical of Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s handling of a crisis over scores of hostages taken by Hamas.

Moreover, an account called “KarMa,” created by an Iranian intelligence unit, claimed to represent Israelis calling for Netanyahu’s resignation.

Microsoft added that Tehran also began impersonating partners after the war started.

Notably, Iranian services created a Telegram account, using the logo of the Hamas military wing to spread false messages related to the hostages in Gaza and threaten Israelis. Microsoft stated that it was unclear whether Iran acted with Hamas’ consent or not.

“Iranian groups also expanded their cyber-enabled influence operations beyond Israel, with a focus on undermining international political, military, and economic support for Israel’s military operations,” the report said.

(With inputs from agencies)