{"id":2646635,"date":"2026-08-18T17:36:02","date_gmt":"2026-08-18T21:36:02","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/doj-charges-17-with-cyber-theft-on-behalf-of-iranian-government\/"},"modified":"2026-08-18T17:39:53","modified_gmt":"2026-08-18T21:39:53","slug":"doj-charges-17-with-cyber-theft-on-behalf-of-iranian-government","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/doj-charges-17-with-cyber-theft-on-behalf-of-iranian-government\/","title":{"rendered":"DOJ charges 17 with cyber theft on behalf of Iranian government"},"content":{"rendered":"<aside class=\"mashsb-container mashsb-main mashsb-stretched\"><div class=\"mashsb-box\"><div class=\"mashsb-count mash-medium\" style=\"&quot;\"><div class=\"counts mashsbcount\">22<\/div><span class=\"mashsb-sharetext\">SHARES<\/span><\/div><div class=\"mashsb-buttons\"><a class=\"mashicon-facebook mash-medium mash-nomargin mashsb-noshadow\" href=\"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/sharer.php?u=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.conservativenewsdaily.net%2Fbreaking-news%2Fdoj-charges-17-with-cyber-theft-on-behalf-of-iranian-government%2F\" target=\"_top\" rel=\"nofollow\"><span class=\"icon\"><\/span><span class=\"text\">Facebook<\/span><\/a><a class=\"mashicon-twitter mash-medium mash-nomargin mashsb-noshadow\" href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/intent\/tweet?text=&amp;url=https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/?p=2646635&amp;via=ConservNewsDly\" target=\"_top\" rel=\"nofollow\"><span class=\"icon\"><\/span><span class=\"text\">Twitter<\/span><\/a><a class=\"mashicon-subscribe mash-medium mash-nomargin mashsb-noshadow\" href=\"#\" target=\"_top\" rel=\"nofollow\"><span class=\"icon\"><\/span><span class=\"text\">Subscribe<\/span><\/a><div class=\"onoffswitch2 mash-medium mashsb-noshadow\" style=\"display:none\"><\/div><\/div>\n            <\/div>\n                <div style=\"clear:both\"><\/div><\/aside>\n            <!-- Share buttons by mashshare.net - Version: 4.0.47--><p>The Department of Justice announced charges against 17 Iranians linked to a large-scale cyber theft operation allegedly conducted by members of the Mabna Institute,based in Iran. As 2013, they have targeted numerous entities including 144 U.S. and 178 foreign universities, dozens of private companies, government agencies, and NGOs worldwide. The <a href=\"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/microsoft-finds-new-backdoor-security-breach-in-exchange-software\/\" title=\"Microsoft finds new backdoor security breach in exchange software\">hackers reportedly stole<\/a> over 31 terabytes of academic data, intellectual property, emails, and other sensitive information, often on behalf of Iran\u2019s Revolutionary Guard. Several defendants used techniques like password-spraying, unauthorized system access, and data theft, leading to significant financial costs for victims. Authorities emphasized the seriousness of such cyber threats to national security and highlighted the ongoing efforts to combat organized cyber espionage activities linked to Iran.  <\/p>\n<p class=\"readmore\">\n    <button onclick=\"showReadMore()\" id=\"readmorebtn\">Read more&#8230;<\/button>\n<\/p>\n<hr id=\"line\">\n<span id=\"more\"><\/p>\n<article class=\"fn-body\">\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">The <a target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\" href=\"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/tag\/justice-department\/\" data-type=\"post_tag\" data-id=\"167\">Department of Justice <\/a>charged 17 Iranians on Tuesday for allegedly carrying out a \u201cmassive\u201d cyber theft campaign on behalf of<a target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\" href=\"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/tag\/iran\/\" data-type=\"post_tag\" data-id=\"100\"> Iran<\/a> that targeted hundreds of universities, companies, government agencies, and nongovernmental organizations around the world.<\/p>\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">According to an <a target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\" href=\"https:\/\/www.justice.gov\/usao-sdny\/pr\/17-iranians-charged-conducting-massive-cyber-theft-campaign-behalf-islamic\">indictment<\/a> unsealed Tuesday, members of the Iran-based Mabna Institute have conducted coordinated <a target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\" href=\"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/tag\/cybersecurity\/\" data-type=\"post_tag\" data-id=\"257\">cyber intrusions<\/a> since at least 2013, targeting 144 U.S. universities and 178 foreign universities, as well as at least 42 U.S. private-sector companies, 11 foreign companies, five U.S. federal and state government agencies, and two NGOs.<\/p>\n<section class=\"explore-more-section\" id=\"wex-recommended-widget\">\n<div class=\"magazine-container single\">\n<h1 class=\"magazine-title mt-2\">Recommended Stories<\/h1>\n<p>             <i class=\"fa-solid fa-play icon\"><\/i>         <\/div>\n<div class=\"explore-grid\">\n<div class=\"explore-card\">                         <a href=\"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/policy\/national-security\/4691805\/doj-cyber-theft-campaign-iran-hackers\/?itm_source=parsely-api\">                             <\/p>\n<div class=\"explore-thumb-wrap\">                                                                                                                                  <\/div>\n<h3>DOJ charges 17 with cyber theft on behalf of Iranian government<\/h3>\n<p>                         <\/a>                     <\/div>\n<div class=\"explore-card\">                         <a href=\"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/news\/world\/4691647\/rubio-state-department-sanctions-icc-leaders-pretend-offenses\/?itm_source=parsely-api\">                             <\/p>\n<div class=\"explore-thumb-wrap\">                                                                                                                                  <\/div>\n<h3>Rubio sanctions ICC leaders to stop \u2018sham\u2019 court from trying \u2018pretend offenses\u2019<\/h3>\n<p>                         <\/a>                     <\/div>\n<div class=\"explore-card\">                         <a href=\"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/news\/white-house\/4691244\/judge-rules-trump-can-begin-paint-tests-19th-century-building-preservation-groups-sued\/?itm_source=parsely-api\">                             <\/p>\n<div class=\"explore-thumb-wrap\">                                                                                                                                  <\/div>\n<h3>Judge rules Trump can begin paint tests on 19th-century building after preservation groups sued<\/h3>\n<p>                         <\/a>                     <\/div>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<\/section>\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">The hackers allegedly stole more than 31 terabytes of academic data and intellectual property from universities, as well as emails and other information from employees at private companies, government agencies, and NGOs.<\/p>\n<div class=\"wex-inarticle-ad wex-inarticle-ad-art-dsk-inart-1\">\n<div class=\"wex-ad-wrap wex-ad-art-dsk-inart-1\" style=\"min-height:90px\"><span class=\"wex-ad-label\" hidden>Advertisement<\/span><\/p>\n<div id=\"div-gpt-ad-3182201-15\" data-wex-ad=\"art-dsk-inart-1\"><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"article-paywall\">\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Prosecutors said many of the intrusions were conducted on behalf of Iran\u2019s Revolutionary Guard, which is responsible in part for gathering intelligence, as well as for other Iranian government and university clients.<\/p>\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Nine of the 17 defendants had been charged in a seven-count indictment announced by the DOJ in March 2018.<\/p>\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">\u201cCoordinated cyber intrusions like those allegedly carried out by the 17 members of the Mabna Institute represent a serious threat to our national security,\u201d <a target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\" href=\"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/tag\/fbi\/\" data-type=\"post_tag\" data-id=\"516\">FBI <\/a>Assistant Director in Charge James C. Barnacle Jr. said in a statement.<\/p>\n<div class=\"wex-inarticle-ad wex-inarticle-ad-art-dsk-inart-2\">\n<div class=\"wex-ad-wrap wex-ad-art-dsk-inart-2\" style=\"min-height:90px\"><span class=\"wex-ad-label\" hidden>Advertisement<\/span><\/p>\n<div id=\"div-gpt-ad-3182201-16\" data-wex-ad=\"art-dsk-inart-2\"><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">\u201cTheir campaign stole vast amounts of intellectual property and sensitive information, reinforcing the FBI\u2019s commitment to confront this activity head-on,\u201d Barnacle added. \u201cBacked by the IRGC, this operation reflects a broader, organized effort to target U.S. institutions and global partners.\u201d<\/p>\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Several of the <a href=\"https:\/\/amzn.to\/3YuVZYV\" >defendants allegedly targeted private companies<\/a> and government entities through password-spraying attacks, unauthorized access to computer systems, and data theft. Prosecutors said those intrusions resulted in more than $20 million in costs for victims to investigate and remediate the attacks.<\/p>\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><strong><a target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\" href=\"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/news\/campaigns\/congressional\/4688861\/mike-johnson-contrast-for-america-tour-midterm-elections\/\">JOHNSON LAUNCHES WEBSITE TO TEACH YOUNG VOTERS ABOUT SOCIALISM AND COMMUNISM AHEAD OF MIDTERM ELECTIONS<\/a><\/strong><\/p>\n<div class=\"wex-inarticle-ad wex-inarticle-ad-art-dsk-inart-3\">\n<div class=\"wex-ad-wrap wex-ad-art-dsk-inart-3\" style=\"min-height:90px\"><span class=\"wex-ad-label\" hidden>Advertisement<\/span><\/p>\n<div id=\"div-gpt-ad-3182201-17\" data-wex-ad=\"art-dsk-inart-3\"><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">\u201cToday\u2019s charges show that neither sophistication nor geographic boundaries will deter us from protecting the national security of our country from those who target the United States from abroad,\u201d U.S. Attorney Jamie McDonald said.<\/p>\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Another defendant, Amir Barati, allegedly helped track the progress of spear-phishing campaigns, exchanged login credentials for compromised accounts with other co-conspirators, created targeting lists, conducted network reconnaissance, and crafted spear-phishing messages.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"wex-inarticle-ad wex-inarticle-ad-art-dsk-inart-4\">\n<div class=\"wex-ad-wrap wex-ad-art-dsk-inart-4\" style=\"min-height:90px\"><span class=\"wex-ad-label\" hidden>Advertisement<\/span><\/p>\n<div id=\"div-gpt-ad-3182201-25\" data-wex-ad=\"art-dsk-inart-4\"><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/article>\n<p><\/span><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>DOJ charges 17 Iranians for global cyber theft campaign<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":4195,"featured_media":2646636,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_mo_disable_npp":"","fifu_image_url":"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/09\/cyber-attack-hacking.webp?w=696","fifu_image_alt":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[33651],"tags":[84339,46819,77788,84340],"class_list":["post-2646635","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-the-western-journal","tag-cyber-theft","tag-cybercrime","tag-doj-charges","tag-iranian-government"],"fifu_image_url":"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/09\/cyber-attack-hacking.webp?w=696","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2646635","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/4195"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=2646635"}],"version-history":[{"count":3,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2646635\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":2646643,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2646635\/revisions\/2646643"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/2646636"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=2646635"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=2646635"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=2646635"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}