Iran’s nuclear energy agency confirms email server hacked

Black Reward threatened to release hacked information in 24 hours unless the authorities released political prisoners and people arrested during the recent unrest.

On Sunday, the group posted a link to their Telegram channel, from where the information can be downloaded. The information is a “cleaned, browser-viewable version” of about 85,000 email message, “perfect for researchers and journalists,” the group said on Twitter.

The group claimed the leaked information included management and operational schedules of different parts of the Bushehr power plant, along with visas and passport information of Iranian and Russian nuclear experts working there, financial receipts, as well as agreements with local and foreign organizations.

The Bushehr nuclear power plant was built using Russian technology in 2011 and is Iran’s first nuclear plant situated along the Persian Gulf. This weekend’s cyberattack on Bushehr was not the first time Iran’s nuclear program has been targeted.

Stuxnet, a malicious worm first uncovered in 2010 had targeted and caused substantial damage to Iran’s nuclear program by infecting Windows PCs in the country’s Natanz nuclear  facility. It is believed to be a cyberweapon built jointly by the US and Israel. Stuxnet reportedly ruined almost one-fifth of Iran’s nuclear centrifuges by infecting over 200,000 computers and causing 1,000 machines to physically degrade. 

If the claims of Black Reward are true, then revealing the operations of the country’s nuclear infrastructure might pave the way for more attacks like Stuxnet.