OFAC Designates Iranian Intelligence Ministry Over Albanian Cyberattacks
The Office of Foreign Assets Control designated Iran’s Ministry of Intelligence and Security (MOIS) and Intelligence Minister Esmail Khatib for engaging in cyber-enabled activities against the U.S. and its allies, the Treasury Department said in a Sept. 9 news release. OFAC has added Khatib and MOIS to its Specially Designated Nationals (SDN) list.
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OFAC said MOIS and its proxies have conducted "malicious cyber operations" since at least 2007, targeting "a range of government and private-sector organizations around the world and across various critical infrastructure sectors." In July, Albanian government computer systems were attacked by threat actors believed to be sponsored by Iran.
“Iran’s cyber attack against Albania disregards norms of responsible peacetime State behavior in cyberspace, which includes a norm on refraining from damaging critical infrastructure that provides services to the public,” said Brian Nelson, undersecretary for terrorism and financial intelligence. “We will not tolerate Iran’s increasingly aggressive cyber activities targeting the United States or our allies and partners.”