Yazılar

Iran’s Nobitex Crypto Exchange Hit by Hackers, $90 Million in Funds Destroyed

/in /tarafından

A powerful anti-Iranian hacking group known as Gonjeshke Darande (Predatory Sparrow) claimed responsibility on Wednesday for a devastating cyberattack on Nobitex, Iran’s largest cryptocurrency exchange. The attack allegedly destroyed around $90 million in digital assets and threatened to leak the platform’s source code.

This marks the group’s second strike in two days, following an earlier operation targeting Bank Sepah, a state-owned Iranian bank. The campaign comes amid escalating tensions and missile exchanges between Israel and Iran.

The hackers claim Nobitex aids the Iranian regime in evading sanctions and financing militant groups, including Hamas, Palestinian Islamic Jihad, and Yemen’s Houthis. Blockchain forensics firm Elliptic confirmed these ties in a blog post, noting that funds had been exchanged between Nobitex and wallets linked to those entities.

Early Wednesday, funds were transferred from Nobitex to hacker-controlled wallets displaying anti-IRGC (Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps) messages. Analysis by TRM Labs and Chainalysis confirmed that approximately $90 million in cryptocurrency was irretrievably “burned” in the operation, meaning the attackers intentionally rendered the assets inaccessible as a political statement.

Elliptic noted that the structure of the hacker wallets ensured that even the attackers could not access the stolen assets.

Nobitex confirmed in a post on X (formerly Twitter) that it had taken its website and app offline due to “unauthorized access.” Its Telegram support channels did not respond to inquiries.

The cyberattack adds to a growing list of high-profile hacks by Predatory Sparrow, which has previously disabled Iranian infrastructure, including gas stations and steel mills. Though Israel has never officially claimed the group, its operations are widely considered to align with Israeli cyber interests.

Senators Elizabeth Warren and Angus King recently highlighted Nobitex’s suspected role in Iranian sanctions evasion in a letter to the Biden administration, citing prior Reuters investigations from 2022.

Cybersecurity experts warn that this breach could further inflame geopolitical tensions while demonstrating the increasing use of blockchain technology in modern cyber warfare.

Rights Advocates Raise Concerns Over U.S. Plan to Use AI for Student Visa Revocation

/in /tarafından

Rights advocates, including free speech groups, have expressed concerns after reports surfaced that the U.S. State Department plans to use artificial intelligence (AI) to revoke the visas of foreign students accused of supporting Palestinian Hamas militants. The initiative, dubbed “Catch and Revoke,” is set to involve AI-assisted reviews of social media accounts belonging to tens of thousands of student visa holders.

This move has raised alarm among groups like the Foundation for Individual Rights and Expression (FIRE) and pro-Palestinian organizations. They argue that AI cannot accurately assess the nuances of expressions related to the highly complex and long-standing Israeli-Palestinian conflict. They also warn that relying on AI for such sensitive matters could infringe on First Amendment rights to free speech and assembly.

According to reports, the State Department is reviewing news reports of anti-Israel demonstrations and lawsuits alleging antisemitism related to foreign nationals. Fox News additionally reported that the department had revoked the visa of a student involved in what it described as “Hamas-supporting disruptions.”

Sarah McLaughlin, a scholar at FIRE, emphasized that AI tools are incapable of grasping the subtleties of political expression concerning the Israeli-Palestinian conflict. The American-Arab Anti-Discrimination Committee called the reported plan an “alarming erosion of constitutionally protected free speech and privacy rights.”

While the State Department did not comment directly, Secretary of State Marco Rubio stated that the U.S. has “zero tolerance for foreign visitors who support terrorists,” reaffirming that violations of U.S. law, including by international students, could lead to visa denial, revocation, and deportation.

This initiative follows actions by the Trump administration, which has taken a hard stance on pro-Palestinian protests, including pledging to deport non-citizen students involved in such protests. Additionally, Trump has threatened to cut federal funding to educational institutions that allow what he deems illegal protests.

The broader context involves the U.S. designating Hamas as a “foreign terrorist organization,” following the group’s deadly October 2023 attack that killed over 1,200 people. Israel’s subsequent military actions in Gaza have led to significant casualties and displacement, further intensifying global debate.

Iran Warns of ‘Irreversible’ Consequences as Israel-Hezbollah Conflict Escalates

/in /tarafından

Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian has issued a stark warning, accusing Israel of attempting to provoke Iran into joining the ongoing conflict between Israel and Hezbollah in Lebanon, which has lasted nearly a year. Speaking in New York at the United Nations General Assembly, Pezeshkian emphasized that Iran does not seek war but fears the “irreversible consequences” of a wider regional conflict.

Pezeshkian described Israel’s recent actions as pushing the Middle East towards full-scale war, particularly in response to Israeli airstrikes against Hezbollah, which made Monday the deadliest day in Lebanon in nearly a year. Accusing the international community of remaining silent in the face of what he called “Israel’s genocide” in Gaza, Pezeshkian reiterated Iran’s support for groups defending their rights, including Hezbollah, though he stopped short of declaring Iran’s direct involvement.

The tensions follow the assassination of Hamas leader Ismail Haniyeh in Tehran in July, an event for which Iran and Hamas have blamed Israel. While Tehran has vowed severe revenge, it has so far refrained from direct retaliation against Israel. Pezeshkian affirmed that Iran will respond “at the appropriate time and place.”

Efforts to broker a ceasefire between Israel and Iran-backed Hamas, mediated by Qatar, Egypt, and the United States, have stalled. Meanwhile, tens of thousands of people have been displaced from both sides of the Israeli-Lebanese border due to near-daily exchanges of fire between Israeli forces and Hezbollah. The situation has become critical, with EU foreign policy chief Josep Borrell warning that the conflict is nearing a full-blown war.