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Iranian Phishing Attempt on LinkedIn

The general security agency uncovered an Iranian phishing attempt on the LinkedIn network

The Israeli general security agency has revealed that in recent months, there was an Iranian phishing attempt against Israeli citizens on LinkedIn. The campaign primarily targeted employees of the government and researchers in various research institutions

The social network

The war with Iran is reaching social networks, as yesterday (Sunday), it was permitted to publish that The General Security Agency exposed that Iranian agents conducted a phishing campaign against Israeli citizens through the social network LinkedIn in recent months. The "phishing" campaign was aimed at gathering information about Israeli policies and citizens. It was carried out by Iranian agents targeting Israeli citizens, primarily government employees and researchers in various research institutions.

The approaches to the citizens were made using fake profiles that impersonated familiar Israeli citizens, with the purpose of gathering information about Israeli policies, government employees, and Israeli citizens. The impersonation was of figures known to those citizens who turned to them or had professional or personal connections with them.

The Iranian sources reached out through the social network "LinkedIn"

According to The Israel Security Agency, the initial contact from the same Iranian entity was made to the Israeli citizen's profile on the social network "LinkedIn," and then the communication continued through email. During their conversation, the Israeli citizen was invited to a conference. The invitation was attached as a file to the email, or alternatively, a file of an article or research that might have been of interest to the citizen was sent.

An example of the correspondence between the Iranian entity and the Israeli citizen on "LinkedIn"
An example of the correspondence between the Iranian entity and the Israeli citizen on "LinkedIn" (Photo: The General Security Agency's Communication)

When the Israeli citizen opened the file, a malicious file was installed on his computer, granting the Iranian entity remote access to his computer. Consequently, the file created a remote takeover by the "attacker" on the computer of the "target," exposing the Iranian entity to all the information stored on the Israeli citizen's computer.

The General Security Agency: The public is called to be vigilant

The appeal of the Iranian element was based on information collected about Israeli citizens from social media networks and the internet, including the content of their communications and their areas of interest and occupation. The awareness and vigilance of the citizens, along with additional actions taken by the General Security Agency and the Israeli security system, prevented the Iranian attempts to achieve their goals.

The General Security Agency stated, "The General Security Service, alongside its partners in the intelligence community, act to disrupt and thwart Iranian attempts to gather information about Israeli citizens, and calls on the public to be alert to the phenomenon of 'phishing' on the internet."

Another example of correspondence
Another example of correspondence (Photo: Israel's General Security Agency's communication)

Last week, a surprising Israeli-Iranian collaboration was publicized when the film "Tatami" was announced to be screened at the Venice Film Festival. The film is a joint effort between Israeli and Iranian creators and will have its world premiere at the prestigious Venice Film Festival, which will take place from August 30th to September 9th. This collaboration is unexpected given the backdrop of Israel-Iran relations, and the film tells the story of Iranian female athletes who are harmed by the extremist regime in their country.
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