The US Justice Department has charged 17 Iranian nationals over an alleged hacking campaign that stole academic research, intellectual property and other proprietary data from organisations around the world.
Prosecutors allege that the Mabna Institute hackers carried out the operation for years on behalf of Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps, other Iranian government bodies, universities and private clients.
The case expands on charges first announced in 2018. Nine defendants appeared in that earlier indictment, while the latest superseding indictment names eight additional people.
Mabna Institute hackers allegedly targeted professors worldwide
According to the Justice Department, the campaign began around 2013 and continued until at least December 2017. The alleged hackers targeted more than 100,000 professor accounts worldwide and compromised about 8,000 of them.
They allegedly used stolen credentials to enter university systems and obtain journals, theses, dissertations, ebooks and research across a broad range of disciplines.
Prosecutors say the group stole at least 31.5 terabytes of academic data and intellectual property. US-based universities reportedly spent more than $3.4 billion to procure or access the affected research material and data.
The indictment alleges that the campaign hit 144 universities in the United States and 178 universities abroad. It also names at least 42 US private-sector companies, 11 foreign companies, government agencies and non-governmental organisations among the targets.
Stolen access allegedly supported Iranian clients
US authorities claim that the Mabna Institute operated as a hacking-for-hire business. The alleged operation reportedly served Iranian state-linked entities as well as domestic universities and paying customers.
The group allegedly sold stolen academic resources through Iranian websites. Customers could reportedly buy research material or use compromised professor accounts to access university library systems.
The Justice Department also links several defendants to attacks against private firms and public bodies. These incidents allegedly included password-spraying attacks, phishing campaigns and data theft.
One of the organisations named in the announcement was HBO. Prosecutors allege that Behzad Mesri and several other defendants participated in the attack on the media company’s systems. Mesri previously faced separate allegations of attempting to extort HBO for about $6 million in Bitcoin.
US offers rewards of up to $10 million
The defendants face charges including conspiracy to commit computer intrusions, wire fraud, unauthorised access for financial gain and aggravated identity theft.
Several counts carry potential prison sentences of up to 20 years. However, a court will determine any sentence if the case results in convictions.
Meanwhile, the State Department’s Rewards for Justice programme has offered up to $10 million for information leading to the whereabouts of five defendants: Behzad Mesri, Mojtaba Galekuhi, Arman Kahzadian, Keyvan Fayaz and Saber Shahbazi Ballojeh.
The charges remain allegations. All defendants are presumed innocent unless proven guilty in court.
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