According to iSight Partners, a cyber-security research firm, a group of Iranian hackers have been targeting hundreds of high-ranking US defense, diplomatic, and other officials via an elaborate social media scheme. As discussed in a Washington Post article, this fake website attracted targets through phony Facebook, Twitter, and LinkedIn accounts. The social networking web was so intricate that these hackers eventually connected to the uppermost levels of American policy – including a four-star admiral, current and former foreign policy officials, and personnel from more than 10 US and Israeli defense contractors. The group involved created more than a dozen fake personas despite using real reporter’s names, biographies, and photos. Then, online relationships with friends, relatives, and colleagues of their targets were established before connecting with their targets directly. After the preliminary communication was initiated, the hackers sent links to various bogus websites that inevitably prompted the recipient to enter their own secure login credentials.
