Israeli cybersecurity officials believe an adversary-led cyberattack was responsible for a number of false siren alerts that rang for nearly an hour on Sunday in Eilat and Jerusalem’s Talpiot, Katamon, and Beit Hakerem neighborhoods, according to the Israeli Army Radio and local Hebrew-language outlets.
Per the source, Israeli National Cyber Directorate (INCD) personnel are under the suspicion that a coordinated cyberattack was “behind a system malfunction” that allowed cyber criminals to access and activate the municipality’s siren systems–which have a different level of security than the Israel Defense Forces’ (IDF) Home Front Command alert system.
While the INCD has yet to confirm the suspected perpetrator of the alleged cyberattack, a former Israeli military official is one of several security experts speculating that Tehran may be the coordinator.
“Israel is preparing for Iranian attempts to harm the country through cyber warfare,” former IDF Deputy Chief of Staff Yair Golan told Army Radio.
Radiflow, an Israeli industrial cybersecurity startup, asserted the Sunday incident shined a light on a possible blind spot.
“Whether this siren attack by Iran was a false flag or accidental triggering remains to be seen but the lack of municipal cybersecurity is clear,” Radiflow CEO Ilan Barda said in a Monday statement.
No ransomware or extortion plot was uncovered by Israeli officials, according to officials on Monday.
A diplomatic source appeared to downplay the severity of the alleged cyberattack, telling the Jerusalem Post that “[t]here is constant cyber activity against Israel.”
“In terms of Israel working on increasing its cyber resilience, it is not in a bad place,” the unnamed diplomatic source told the outlet.
The individual highlighted that Tel Aviv, in cooperation with other nations, is set to build a cyber version of its Iron Dome defense system.
“The headlines exaggerated about the sirens yesterday,” claimed the diplomatic source.
Tehran has not responded to the siren system hacking allegations raised by various entities.
Tensions between Israel and Iran have been further strained in recent weeks following the assassination of Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) Quds Force Colonel Hassan Sayyad Khodaei, whose slaying was linked to Israeli forces by the New York Times.
As rhetoric intensifies between the Middle East nations, Tehran has vowed to avenge the late top officer and other Iran-linked security personnel in both Syria and Iran. The IRGC’s pledge appears to have prompted Israel to give increased credence to so-called “concrete” threats.
Warnings reached a new level on Friday as Israeli officials claimed to be in possession of intelligence that Iran was seeking to carry out a number of attacks over the past weekend, with several targeting some 2,000 Israelis in Istanbul.
“Cells of Iranians and Turkish mercenaries are out searching for Israelis at any cost,” a senior security official told Ynet news. “We can’t foil every single attack; I urge Israelis to return home.”
Israeli nationals capable of evacuating were instructed to “immediately leave Istanbul,” and others were told to remain in their locked hotel rooms and reduce identifying signs.