A hacking organization with ties to the Iranian government that attempted to meddle in the 2020 election is still active. It poses a danger to the United States, according to a warning issued by the FBI.
In a report by NBC News, the agency warned businesses on Thursday, Oct. 21, that the hacker group is conducting "ongoing" efforts to steal and leak documents and may be targeting American companies. US officials claimed that the Iranian cybersecurity firm is named Emennet Pasargad.
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The Attempt to Hack into the 2020 Election
In October 2020, the FBI made the announcement that the most significant foreign attempt to influence that year's elections in the US had been orchestrated by a group in Iran.
During the last weeks leading up to the election, Democrats who were registered to vote in Florida, a state that makes voter information publicly available, reported receiving threatening emails that instructed them to switch parties and vote Republican. The radical pro-Trump organization known as the "Proud Boys" claimed authorship of the emails.
Iran's government, however, said they had nothing to do with it at the time.
The following month, the US Department of Justice (DOJ) brought charges against two Iranian nationals in connection with the plot, claiming that the pair had attempted to undermine voter registration in 11 states and had succeeded in doing so in one of those regions.
Emennet Pasargad and six Iranians linked with it were hit with sanctions by the Treasury Department in 2021 for their online operation to harass and manipulate American voters, as well as to erode voter confidence and foment conflict, in connection with the 2020 US presidential election.
Warning From the FBI Concerning Emennet Pasargad
In a document that was released on Thursday, the FBI warned that these approaches might be utilized to attack US companies, as shown during Emennet's cyber-enabled data operation that targeted the 2020 election.
Aside from the effort to influence the result of the previous presidential election, Emennet Pasargad is mainly known for hacking Israeli businesses. According to the FBI, the gang often breaks into organizations and publishes potentially sensitive information online under fictitious hacktivist identities.
Cybersecurity firm Crowdstrike has been keeping tabs on the Emennet Pasargad for years. Now, their senior vice president of intelligence, Adam Meyers, has informed NBC News that early this year, the organization hacked and exposed material from many Israeli targets. Meyers alleged they hacked CCTV cameras at Israeli ports.
US Government on Iranian Hackers
In the memo, the FBI also stated that over the last year, the government agency had detected a devastating cyber strike on a US firm. This indicates that the group continues to be a danger to companies' cybersecurity.
The FBI did not specify which business firm it was referring to. NBC News attempted to clarify that part but received no response from the government agency.
The FBI and Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency (CISA) stated in recent weeks they found no indication of a foreign adversary planning for substantial cyber operations targeting US electoral infrastructure, but influence operations were possible.
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Written by Trisha Kae Andrada
