Key computer systems in�Iran�have again come under attack from a powerful malware that was first unleashed three years ago by the United States and�Israel�to thwart Tehran�s plans to develop nuclear weapons.
Iranian officials blamed the Christmas Day attacks, which targeted computer systems at a power plant and other industries, as well as a Culture Ministry information center, on American and Israeli hackers.
In 2009, the Stuxnet worm infiltrated computers operating Iran�s nuclear power program, resulting in uranium enrichment centrifuges spinning out of control and becoming damaged. The cyber attack reportedly set back the country�s clandestine effort to build a nuclear arsenal of weapons.
Stuxnet was developed under a covert U.S. program, according to�The New York Times.
The newspaper also reported that the December 25 attacks may have been in response to Iranian hackers going after computers in�Saudi Arabia�s oil industry and some American banks a few months ago.
On December 31, the Iranian government�claimed�that during a six-day naval drill staged to show off new torpedoes, the Navy�s �cyber defense group� repelled a mock attack on its defensive computer network.
By ALLGOV
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