Maximillian

I want to share some of what I have personally experienced in the past few weeks because I believe others who speak out against the Islamic regime in Iran need to understand how these operations work. I am an American-Israeli journalist covering Iran, and I have been repeatedly targeted by sophisticated cyberattacks, attempted espionage, and coordinated online harassment campaigns. Several months ago, the regime’s Ministry of Intelligence publicly designated me an enemy of the regime, placing me second on a list of individuals it considers particularly hostile. In recent weeks, the targeting has escalated significantly. Here is what has been happening: 1. Google has repeatedly warned me that government-backed attackers are targeting my accounts. I have received multiple official Google security warnings involving more than one of my accounts. These are not the first warnings: Google also notified me of government-backed attempts to compromise my accounts in 2024. 2. Someone hacked the X account of an academic I personally know, and used it to lure me into a phishing operation. On September 30, I received a message from the account of Daniel Pipes, an academic I know personally, inviting me to discuss a new project. A woman posing as his assistant subsequently contacted me through email and WhatsApp, arranged a meeting, and sent what appeared to be a Google Meet invitation. When I clicked the link, I was redirected to a suspicious website asking me to sign into my Google account. I refused to enter my credentials. The supposed assistant insisted that the website was their internal server and that it was safe. I refused again. I later contacted the real Daniel Pipes, who confirmed that his account had been compromised and that he had never sent me those messages. 3. Last week, I was targeted with a remote-access Trojan disguised as a copyright infringement lawsuit. An email accusing me of copyright violations on social media directed me to download a file supposedly related to legal proceedings. I suspected it was malicious and did not download it. Examination of the file in an isolated sandbox environment identified what appeared to be Parallax RAT, malware capable of providing attackers with remote access to an infected computer. 4. I have also been subjected to coordinated online character assassination and disinformation campaigns, including activity linked to the IRGC. These campaigns have involved vicious sexist attacks against me, racist attacks against my partner, and the deliberate circulation of false allegations about my political positions and activities. Among the fabrications are claims that I supposedly “vote for Arab parties” in Israel, alongside other invented narratives intended to discredit me and drive wedges between Iranians and Israelis. My message to other journalists, dissidents, activists, and anyone speaking out against the Islamic Republic is simple: take these threats seriously. The people targeting you may not appear as strangers. They may impersonate your friends, colleagues, professional contacts, or legitimate institutions. Their attacks may unfold over days or weeks and involve multiple platforms to establish credibility. Verify unusual requests, even when they appear to come from someone you know. Protect your accounts and be extremely cautious with unfamiliar links and attachments. Cc: @israelpolice