ATLANTA — As the conflict between Israel, Iran, and the US continues to heat up, Homeland Security is warning about the increased threat of cyberattacks.
A federal prosecutor said two hackers from Iran allegedly crippled several City of Atlanta computer systems in 2018.
He said the city refused to pay a ransom, consistent with the advice the FBI generally gives, but he said what they did to this city underscores why a new terrorism warning should be heeded.
“Sometimes with these cyber actors, particularly from Iran, they’re not only targeting our financial systems and trying to get money. In certain cases, in the past, they have infiltrated our critical infrastructure. They’ve targeted water systems, targeted a dam in one instance more than a decade ago,” U.S. Attorney’s Office acting criminal division chief Nathan Kitchens said.
Kitchens told Channel 2 investigative reporter Mark Winne that he knows the capabilities of hackers based in Iran to cook up computer attacks because he was the lead prosecutor on the federal indictment here against those two Iranian nationals accused of the cyberattack on the city.
“The city really was faced with significant crippling problems for a matter of weeks,” Kitchens said.
“We’re just over 700 people that we’ve rescued,” Stern told Channel 2’s Candace McCowan.
One of the people his company evacuated is Sonia Delgado from Alpharetta. She was visiting Israel with her daughter and best friend.
“We had something hit very close to us, so the next day I was like that’s it,” Delgado said about the moment she knew she had to get out of the Middle East. “When we went to leave to go to the meet-up point, everybody got an alarm and had to shelter,” added Delgado.
RELATED STORIES:
- Georgia leaders, lawmakers react after US attacks Iran
- Protesters in Atlanta rally against U.S. involvement in Israel-Iran conflict
- Marjorie Taylor Greene says if US carries out attacks on Iran, it will split the MAGA movement
A June 22 National Terrorism Advisory System bulletin bearing the seal of the U.S. Department of Homeland Security says: “The ongoing Iran conflict is causing a heightened threat environment in the United States. Low-level cyberattacks against US networks by pro-Iranian hacktivists are likely, and cyber actors affiliated with the Iranian government may conduct attacks against US networks.”
Winne spoke with Kitchens about specifics in the city of Atlanta case.
“We indicted two individuals, Faramaz Savandi and Mohammed Mansoury, for committing computer hacking in the city of Atlanta. So, they are facing about a 10-year sentence in Atlanta if we were able to arrest them,” Kitchens said. “The March 2018 attack was really the most significant cyberattack against any U.S. city. It resulted in tremendous inconveniences and difficulties for the systems. What basically happened is, it took down the payment platforms for the city, so people couldn’t pay traffic tickets. They couldn’t set up water service. They had to go into the office by hand and try to fill out business license forms. Police couldn’t even access their old dashcam videos.”
An FBI wanted flier said Since December 2015, Shah Mansouri and Shahi Savandi have received over $6 million in ransom payments from victims across several sectors.
The bulletin said: “Both hacktivists and Iranian government-affiliated actors routinely target poorly secured US networks and Internet-connected devices for disruptive cyberattacks.”
“Is this a time for folks to be vigilant, not just about computer hacking, but other security concerns?” Winne asked Kitchens.
“No question,” Kitchens said. “Really, a time like this requires extreme vigilance by anyone, from small businesses, even to individuals. Really, what these hackers are looking for are easy points of access.”
Kitchens said he has no information officially connecting the two suspects in the case here to the government of Iran.
The bulletin also said: “The likelihood of violent extremists in the Homeland independently mobilizing to violence in response to the conflict would likely increase if Iranian leadership issued a religious ruling calling for retaliatory violence against targets in the Homeland. Multiple recent Homeland terrorist attacks have been motivated by anti-Semitic or anti-Israel sentiment, and the ongoing Israel-Iran conflict could contribute to US-based individuals plotting additional attacks.”
Kitchens says the pair charged in Atlanta also face charges in New Jersey for ransom attacks there and in other cities, striking hospital systems, the Port of San Diego, and more.
Winne said he would have liked to be able to talk to defense lawyers for their side of this story, but Kitchens said no attorneys have come forward to represent them.,