US Intelligence Retaliates Against Iranian Election Interference
In preparation for the US election, the US National Security Agency and Cyber Command carried out a cyberattack on Iranian groups. Two weeks ago, Iranian hackers working for the Islamic Revolutionary Guards Corps posed as a far-right group, the Proud Boys, sent threatening emails to American voters and posted videos questioning the legitimacy of the US voting process
Gen. Paul Nakasone, head of the National Security Agency and U.S. Cyber Command, said the efforts to secure the 2020 election vote were ongoing. Photo credit: Salwan Georges/The Washington Post
The hackers were able to access voter registration information for many states. Iran’s mission to the UN denied the actions of the Islamic Revolutionary Guard claiming that, in fact, the US meddles in Iranian elections, not the other way around.
Details have not been released about the cyberattacks carried out on Iranian actors. However, this is not an isolated incident. The NSA and US federal government have been proactive in preventing foreign interference in the election after the Russian interference scandal of 2016.
Iran’s Supreme Leader, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, announced that the outcome of the US election would not change their policy towards the USA. This statement was supported by the Iranian Foreign Minister, Mohammad Javad Zarif, who declared that the Iranian government does not have a preferred US presidential candidate.
Sources
https://edition.cnn.com/2020/10/30/politics/iran-hackers-proud-boys/index.html
https://edition.cnn.com/2020/11/03/politics/us-cyber-operation-iran-election-interference/index.html