Iran’s Atomic Energy Organization claimed on Sunday that hackers acting on behalf of an unidentified foreign country breached the network of one of its subsidiaries and gained unfettered access to its email system.

A hacker group calling itself “Black Reward” has claimed responsibility for the attack on Iran’s Atomic Energy Organization, demanding that Tehran release political prisoners arrested in recent protests.

The group said it leaked 50 gigabytes of internal emails, contracts, and construction plans related to Iran’s Russian-backed Bushehr nuclear power plant and shared the files on its Telegram channel.

It is unclear whether the compromised system contained classified information. However, Iran has in the past accused the US and Israel of cyberattacks on the country’s infrastructure.

The cyberattack comes amid massive anti-regime protests in the country sparked by the state killing of 22-year-old Makhsa Amini on September 16. 

Thousands of Iranian women, having removed their hijab, are at the forefront of the protest movement, chanting slogans against the clerical regime and not hesitating to clash with security forces.

Source: CNN Greece

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