{"id":166465,"date":"2021-11-18T17:05:53","date_gmt":"2021-11-18T22:05:53","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/breaking911.com\/?p=166465"},"modified":"2021-11-18T17:05:53","modified_gmt":"2021-11-18T22:05:53","slug":"10m-reward-iranian-hackers-charged-with-2020-voter-intimidation-campaign-that-included-state-election-site-breach","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/breaking911.com\/10m-reward-iranian-hackers-charged-with-2020-voter-intimidation-campaign-that-included-state-election-site-breach\/","title":{"rendered":"$10M REWARD: Iranian hackers charged with 2020 voter intimidation campaign that included state election site breach"},"content":{"rendered":"

Iranians Posing as \u2018Proud Boys\u2019 Members Charged in U.S. Election Meddling<\/strong><\/em><\/p><\/blockquote>\n

An indictment was unsealed in New York today charging two Iranian nationals for their involvement in a cyber-enabled campaign to intimidate and influence American voters, and otherwise undermine voter confidence and sow discord, in connection with the 2020 U.S. presidential election.<\/p>\n

According to court documents, Seyyed Mohammad Hosein Musa Kazemi (\u0633\u06cc\u062f \u0645\u062d\u0645\u062f \u062d\u0633\u06cc\u0646 \u0645\u0648\u0633\u06cc \u06a9\u0627\u0638\u0645\u06cc), aka Mohammad Hosein Musa Kazem, aka Hosein Zamani, 24, and Sajjad Kashian (\u0633\u062c\u0627\u062f \u06a9\u0627\u0634\u06cc\u0627\u0646), aka Kiarash Nabavi, 27, both of Iran, obtained confidential U.S. voter information from at least one state election website; sent threatening email messages to intimidate and interfere with voters; created and disseminated a video containing disinformation about purported election infrastructure vulnerabilities; attempted to access, without authorization, several states\u2019 voting-related websites; and successfully gained unauthorized access to a U.S. media company\u2019s computer network that, if not for successful FBI and victim company efforts to mitigate, would have provided the conspirators another vehicle to disseminate false claims after the election.<\/p>\n

\u201cThis indictment details how two Iran-based actors waged a targeted, coordinated campaign to erode confidence in the integrity of the U.S. electoral system and to sow discord among Americans,\u201d said Assistant Attorney General Matthew G. Olsen of the Justice Department\u2019s National Security Division. \u201cThe allegations illustrate how foreign disinformation campaigns operate and seek to influence the American public. The Department is committed to exposing and disrupting malign foreign influence efforts using all available tools, including criminal charges.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cAs alleged, Kazemi and Kashian were part of a coordinated conspiracy in which Iranian hackers sought to undermine faith and confidence in the U.S. presidential election,\u201d said U.S. Attorney Damian Williams for the Southern District of New York. \u201cWorking with others, Kazemi and Kashian accessed voter information from at least one state\u2019s voter database, threatened U.S. voters via email, and even disseminated a fictitious video that purported to depict actors fabricating overseas ballots. The United States will never tolerate any foreign actors\u2019 attempts to undermine our free and democratic elections. As a result of the charges unsealed today, and the concurrent efforts of our U.S. government partners, Kazemi and Kashian will forever look over their shoulders as we strive to bring them to justice.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cThe FBI remains committed to countering malicious cyber activity targeting our democratic process,\u201d said Assistant Director Bryan Vorndran of the FBI\u2019s Cyber Division. \u201cWorking rapidly with our private sector and U.S. government partners and ahead of the election, we were able to disrupt and mitigate this malicious activity \u2013 and then to enable today\u2019s joint, sequenced operations against the adversary. Today\u2019s announcement shows what we can accomplish as a community and a country when we work together, and the FBI will continue to do its part to keep our democracy safe.\u201d<\/p>\n

According to the allegations contained in the indictment unsealed today:<\/p>\n

The Voter Intimidation and Influence Campaign<\/u><\/em><\/p>\n

Starting in approximately August 2020, and proceeding until November 2020, Kazemi, Kashian, and other co-conspirators began a coordinated, campaign to undermine faith and confidence in the 2020 presidential election (the \u201cVoter Intimidation and Influence Campaign\u201d) and otherwise sow discord within U.S. society. The Campaign had four components:<\/p>\n