Microsoft warns of Iranian cyber activity targeting US election-related websites

Shafaq News/ Microsoft has warned about limited reconnaissance and probing activities by Iranian hackers targeting multiple election-related websites in key US swing states.

In a blog post, Microsoft identified an Iranian hacking group, known as "Cotton Sandstorm" and linked to Iran's Revolutionary Guard, as being behind these efforts. The group has been monitoring US election-related websites and media outlets as the election approaches.

Researchers indicated that these activities suggest preparations for more direct interference operations. According to Microsoft, the hackers conducted limited scans of several election-related websites in unspecified swing states, and in May, they also scanned an anonymous US news site to identify vulnerabilities.

The researchers stated that Cotton Sandstorm is likely to escalate its activities as the election nears, given the group’s rapid operations and history of electoral interference.

This development has raised concerns, particularly in light of the group's past activities. In response, a spokesperson for Iran's mission to the United Nations dismissed these allegations as "completely baseless and unacceptable," asserting that Iran has no motivation or intent to interfere in US elections.

Cotton Sandstorm previously engaged in a separate online influence campaign just before the 2020 US presidential election. The group also released a video on social media, purporting to show hackers infiltrating an election system. Although this operation did not affect individual voting systems, its goal was to create chaos, confusion, and doubt, according to senior US officials at the time.

Microsoft also revealed that after the 2020 election, Cotton Sandstorm carried out another campaign encouraging violence against US election officials who refuted claims of widespread voting fraud.