Israel-aligned hacktivist group, group Gonjeshke Darande — also known as Predatory Sparrow — has claimed responsibility for a cyberattack against Iran’s gas stations, which has disrupted 70% of them, according to reports.
The attack disrupted Iran’s fuel distribution system, disabling smart cards for subsidized fuel access, leading to widespread station malfunctions and forcing some to sell gasoline at non-subsidized prices.
“We, Gonjeshke Darande, carried out another cyberattack today, taking out a majority of the gas pumps throughout Iran,” the group wrote on its Telegram channel. “This cyberattack comes in response to the aggression of the Islamic Republic and its proxies in the region. This cyberattack was carried out in a controlled manner to avoid potential damage to emergency services.”
Iran’s Petroleum Minister Javad Owji accused Israel and the US of the recent cyberattack, while Iran’s Passive Defence Organization said it is preparing a response.
Predatory Sparrow has previously claimed responsibility for several attacks on Iranian infrastructure. The group was responsible for an attack against Iran’s steel industry in 2022, and an attack on the nation’s railways in 2021 as well as an attack on the Iranian Offshore Oil Company and the Ministry of Roads and Urban Development, according to Check Point Research.
In a 2021 report, Check Point Research analyzed the technical nature of Predatory Sparrow’s malware, analyzing its sophisticated cyberattacks on Iranian railways and Syrian infrastructure.
