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U.S., ISRAEL DEVELOPED FLAME COMPUTER VIRUS TO SLOW IRANIAN NUCLEAR EFFORTS: THE WASHINGTON POST
ARMENPRESS
20 June, 2012
YEREVAN
YEREVAN, JUNE 20, ARMENPRESS: The United States and Israel jointly
developed a sophisticated computer virus nicknamed Flame that collected
intelligence in preparation for cyber-sabotage aimed at slowing Iran's
ability to develop a nuclear weapon, The Washington Post cites Western
officials with knowledge of the effort, Armenpress reports.
The massive piece of malware secretly mapped and monitored Iran's
computer networks, sending back a steady stream of intelligence to
prepare for a cyber¬warfare campaign, according to the officials.
The effort, involving the National Security Agency, the CIA and
Israel's military, has included the use of destructive software such as
the Stuxnet virus to cause malfunctions in Iran's nuclear-enrichment
equipment. The emerging details about Flame provide new clues to
what is thought to be the first sustained campaign of cyber-sabotage
against an adversary of the United States.
"This is about preparing the battlefield for another type of covert
action," said one former high-ranking U.S. intelligence official,
who added that Flame and Stuxnet were elements of a broader assault
that continues today. "Cyber-collection against the Iranian program
is way further down the road than this." Flame came to light last
month after Iran detected a series of cyberattacks on its oil industry.
The disruption was directed by Israel in a unilateral operation that
apparently caught its American partners off guard, according to several
U.S. and Western officials who spoke on the condition of anonymity.
ARMENPRESS
20 June, 2012
YEREVAN
YEREVAN, JUNE 20, ARMENPRESS: The United States and Israel jointly
developed a sophisticated computer virus nicknamed Flame that collected
intelligence in preparation for cyber-sabotage aimed at slowing Iran's
ability to develop a nuclear weapon, The Washington Post cites Western
officials with knowledge of the effort, Armenpress reports.
The massive piece of malware secretly mapped and monitored Iran's
computer networks, sending back a steady stream of intelligence to
prepare for a cyber¬warfare campaign, according to the officials.
The effort, involving the National Security Agency, the CIA and
Israel's military, has included the use of destructive software such as
the Stuxnet virus to cause malfunctions in Iran's nuclear-enrichment
equipment. The emerging details about Flame provide new clues to
what is thought to be the first sustained campaign of cyber-sabotage
against an adversary of the United States.
"This is about preparing the battlefield for another type of covert
action," said one former high-ranking U.S. intelligence official,
who added that Flame and Stuxnet were elements of a broader assault
that continues today. "Cyber-collection against the Iranian program
is way further down the road than this." Flame came to light last
month after Iran detected a series of cyberattacks on its oil industry.
The disruption was directed by Israel in a unilateral operation that
apparently caught its American partners off guard, according to several
U.S. and Western officials who spoke on the condition of anonymity.