Attack on Israel Electric Grid Coincides with CyberTech Conference in Tel Aviv - CBN News

Attack on Israel Electric Grid Coincides with CyberTech Conference in Tel Aviv

Jan. 27, 2016  CBN News

JERUSALEM, Israel – As temperatures dropped this week in Jerusalem, Israel's electrical grid experienced a major cyberattack.

Israeli energy officials say they've identified the virus, but are still working on the source of the attack.

The announcement came during Israel's Third Annual CyberTech Conference, an event that drew nearly 8,000 participants this year, many of them world leaders in cybertechnology.

Israeli Energy Minister Yuval Steinitz called the attack on the electrical authority "a fresh example" of cyber vulnerability.

"This is a fresh example of the sensitivity of infrastructure to cyberattacks and the importance of preparing ourselves to defend ourselves against such attacks."

In his concluding remarks at the conference, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said part of the task is defeating those who "seek to take the world back to a dark age."

"We have to make sure that the forces of the future defeat the forces that seek to take the world back to a dark age," Netanyahu said. "I think this is also part of our challenge. I think that we have to pool resources to make sure that tomorrow wins over yesterday. And that too is part of our task in cybersecurity, in the assurance of cybersecurity."

Israel Eyed as Iran Hit by Computer Virus

CBNNews.com

Thursday, May 31, 2012

 

  

TEHRAN, Iran - A powerful computer virus known as "Flame" briefly affected Iran's key oil industry computers, a senior Iranian military official said Wednesday.

The malware virus has data-snatching capabilities and can even eavesdrop on computer users. News of last month's attack is just getting out. Iran has not disclosed the full extent of the disruptions on its computer system, although the government cut Internet links to the country's main oil export terminal -- a move that appeared to be an attempt to contain the virus.

Experts see similarities between Flame and the Stuxnet virus, which disrupted Iran's nuclear centrifuges in 2010. Stuxnet was widely believed to be the work of Israeli intelligence, leading to speculation that Israeli programmers may have struck again.

The Iranian government said the sophisticated Flame virus appeared to be espionage, but didn't blame a specific country or source for the attack.

Israeli officials neither confirmed nor denied an Israeli role in the cyber attack. When asked about Flame, Vice Premier Moshe Yaalon said, "Whoever sees the Iranian threat as a significant threat is likely to take various steps, including these, to hobble it."

"Israel is blessed with high technology, and we boast tools that open all sorts of opportunities for us," he added.

Iranian leaders said experts have successfully produced an anti-virus program to combat Flame and remove the malware from its computers.

http://www.cbn.com/cbnnews/world/2012/May/Israel-Eyed-as-Iran-Hit-by-Computer-Virus/