Report: Iran targets U.S. officials in hacking spree

By Rudy Takala, Rudy Takala

Published December 20, 2015

Hackers backed by Iran's Revolutionary Guard Corps have hacked top administration officials in the United States, according to an official quoted in the Wall Street Journal late Wednesday.

"U.S. officials were among many who were targeted by recent cyberattacks," the source said. Those officials included staffers in the State Department's Office of Iranian Affairs and its Bureau of Near Eastern Affairs, in addition to some journalists and academics.

The source also said the attacks may be linked to reports of detained dual citizens, pointing to Iran's arrest of Siamak Namazi on Oct. 15. After confiscating his computer, the IRGC may be trying to hack those he has been in contact with in order to build an espionage case.

After Iran arrested Washington Post reporter Jason Rezaian in July 2014, the country used similar tactics to try to hack his friends and associates. "The Iranian security services attacked Jason's and his wife's computers both before and after they were taken," Ali Rezaian, the journalist's brother, told the Journal. "Iranian authorities used Jason's social media in an attempt to engage and entrap his friends."