Suspected cyberattack paralyses Iran's gas stations

As a result of potential sabotage, which is code for cyberattacks, nearly 70% of Iran’s gas stations were forced to close on Monday, according to Iranian state television. According to the report, the irregularity in the gas stations was caused by a “software problem”. It advised against hurrying to the stations that were still open. The Times of Israel and other Israeli media attributed the issue to an assault by a hacker collective known as “Gonjeshke Darande,” or predatory sparrow. According to an Oil Ministry statement cited by State TV, over thirty percent of gas stations are still operational. There are about 33,000 gas stations in the nation. In recent years, Iran has seen a series of cyberattacks on its filling stations, railway system and industries. Surveillance cameras in government buildings, including prisons, have also been hacked in the past. In 2022, the Gonjeshke Darande group hacked a major steel company in the southwest of the country. A cyberattack on Iran’s fuel distribution system in 2021 paralyzed gas stations across the country, leading to long lines of angry motorists. The hacking group claimed responsibility for the attack on fuel pumps. The country disconnected much of its government infrastructure from the internet after the Stuxnet computer virus - widely believed to be a joint U.S.-Israeli creation - disrupted thousands of Iranian centrifuges in the country’s nuclear sites in the late 2000s. Iran, long sanctioned by the West, faces difficulties in getting up-to-date hardware and software, often relying on Chinese-manufactured electronics or older systems no longer being patched by manufacturers. That would make it easier for a potential hacker to target. Pirated versions of Windows and other software are common across Iran.