Terrorist hackers threaten Syrian security with malicious methods

The Syrian Electronic Army currently poses a great threat to Syrian national security due to the cyber attacks it launched against the legitimate government in Syria recently, despite the state of decline it is experiencing.

Terrorist hackers

According to Syrian TV, the Syrian Electronic Army is a group of hackers cooperating to carry out cyberattacks against targets inside and outside Syria.

The Syrian Electronic Army was established in the aftermath of 2011, and it played a role in the cyberattacks that some political, governmental and military entities in the world were exposed to recently.

Hacking attacks

The Syrian Electronic Army uses many different methods to carry out its attacks, including electronic hacking, where networks and electronic systems are hacked in order to gain control of them or steal information.

There are also distributed service attacks, where the traffic on targeted websites is increased excessively to make them unable to respond to requests.

Malware

Syrian activist Ayman Salah said that the Syrian Electronic Army has many other methods by which it penetrates systems, including its use of malicious software to enter electronic systems and networks and control them remotely.

Salah confirmed to the Reference that these hackers use, among other methods, fake e-mail messages and sometimes fake websites to obtain personal or financial information from individuals.

He explained that these methods represent a serious threat to companies, governments, and other institutions that use electronic systems and networks.

Penetrating America

At the end of 2013, a number of elements of the Syrian Electronic Army hacked the Associated Press Twitter account from Syria, where they posted a tweet about a false bombing in the White House that injured the then-President Barack Obama and led to a temporary decline in the US stock market worth $136 billion.

The hacking unit then targeted Harvard University, the US Marine Corps, Human Rights Watch, and various news channels with separate cyberattacks, according to Syrian TV.

Extension of Iran

In 2013, former CIA Director Michael Hayden declared that the Syrian Electronic Army “is an extension of the Iranian state,” and later added that it appears to be an agent of Iran.

Some reports indicate a relationship between the Syrian Electronic Army and Iran, with Tehran supporting the Syrian Electronic Army by providing it with technical resources, training, and financial support. Some analysts believe that the Syrian Electronic Army relies on Iranian support to carry out some cyberattacks.

Syrian activist Mohamed al-Ashaal confirmed that there is indeed a strong relationship between the Syrian Electronic Army and Tehran due to the financial support that Iran provides to achieve certain goals that serve its interests, including the hacking of many accounts of the political systems in the United States.

Ashaal noted in an exclusive statement to the Reference that Tehran has exploited the political and strategic relations between it and Syria, especially since the two countries enjoy a strong relationship and multi-field cooperation.

He added that because of this relationship, the Syrian Electronic Army benefits from Iranian support in carrying out cyberattacks, which allows Iran to have a role in directing some cyberattacks that target other countries in the region.