The Israel Security Agency (Shin Bet) and Israel’s National Cyber Directorate on Tuesday revealed a sharp rise in Iranian-backed cyberattack attempts targeting prominent Israeli figures over the past year, including senior government officials, current and former defense establishment members, academics and journalists.
Iranian intelligence operatives have significantly increased efforts to breach private Google accounts and popular messaging applications such as Telegram and WhatsApp, according to the joint statement.
The campaign is aimed at collecting sensitive personal and professional information to advance terrorism, espionage and influence operations, primarily through targeted phishing attacks.
Officials said the attackers typically tailor their approach to victims’ personal or professional interests, often impersonating well-known individuals and inviting targets to meetings or urging them to download files via malicious links.
In other cases, phishing messages are used to trick victims into providing login credentials, including passwords and two-factor authentication codes, granting attackers full access to email and messaging accounts.
In recent months, the Shin Bet and the National Cyber Directorate have worked to thwart hundreds of such attempts. Defensive measures have included issuing targeted warnings, conducting security briefings to identify irregular activity, blocking unauthorized access to compromised accounts and providing guidance on strengthening digital security.
Authorities have also launched public awareness campaigns and distributed tools to help mitigate threats.
The agencies urge users, particularly those handling sensitive information, to reinforce security settings on Google accounts, messaging platforms and social networks.
Recommended steps include enabling two-factor authentication, updating recovery email details and reviewing linked accounts. They also pointed to advanced protection programs geared to senior officials recently introduced by Google and WhatsApp.
The Shin Bet said it will continue working with the National Cyber Directorate to detect and disrupt hostile cyber activity and bolster Israel’s defenses against future attacks.
