Cyber attack on Iran Oil Ministry traced to US: Official

Cyber attack on Iran Oil Ministry traced to US: Official

Sat Jun 9, 2012 5:46PM GMT

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The head of Iran's cyber police says the perpetrators behind the recent cyber attack on the Iranian Oil Ministry have been traced to the US.

Kamal Hadianfar told reporters on Saturday that two suspicious American IP addresses were identified in the cyber attack.

He said that the issue has been pursued by the Iranian Foreign Ministry and Interpol, adding that the US needs to disclose the identity of the hackers to Iran.

He said that the cyber attack on the Oil Ministry was successfully neutralized.

On Monday, April 23, the Iranian Oil Ministry spokesman said a cyber attack targeted the ministry and the National Iranian Oil Company, adding, however, that it had failed to damage any key data.

“The cyber attack has not damaged the main data of the Oil Ministry and the National Iranian Oil Company since public servers are separate from the main ones; they have different [network] wirings and are not connected to the Internet,” Ali-Reza Nikzad said.

Iran’s Deputy Oil Minister Hamdollah Mohammadnejad said later that the attack was “in the form of a virus that aimed to steal and damage data", adding that "those who designed the malware “pursued certain objectives.”