Security researchers at Microsoft revealed on February 3 that a hacking team backed by the Iranian regime allegedly stole and leaked private customer data from the French satirical magazine Charlie Hebdo.
Iran behind hack of French magazine Charlie Hebdo, Microsoft says https://t.co/K9LJQpBvOz pic.twitter.com/uNGLPHFJX2
— Reuters (@Reuters) February 3, 2023
After it published a series of cartoons mocking and criticizing Iran's Supreme Leader Ayatollah Khamenei and the Islamic Republic, the magazine was hacked in early January.
The caricatures were part of Charlie Hebdo’s media campaign to show support for the anti-government protests that have rocked the Muslim country since last year.
Tehran and Paris did not immediately respond to requests for comments regarding the incident. At the same time, a Charlie Hebdo press officer said the magazine has no comments on the matter "for the moment."
Iran publicly promised to take an "effective response" to the "insulting" cartoons published by the satirical magazine. Some of these responses include summoning the French envoy to Iran, terminating the French Institute of Research activities in the country, and re-evaluating France’s cultural activities in the Muslim nation.
After the French satirical magazine Charlie Hebdo launched a cartoon contest to mock Iran’s ruling cleric, Microsoft security researchers say a state-backed Iranian cyber unit struck back with a hack-and-leak campaign that was designed to provoke fear. https://t.co/K12ouiEnWs
— The Associated Press (@AP) February 3, 2023
Microsoft researchers stated in a report that the cybersecurity attacks against Charlie Hebdo were part of a broader digital influence operation whose techniques were highly similar to previously similar activities connected to Iranian-backed hacking teams.
The tech giant also said that the hacking group responsible for the cyberattack is reported to be the same one that US Department of Justice officials identified as having conducted a "multi-faceted campaign" to interfere during the 2020 presidential elections. At the time, the Iranian government denied reports of any involvement.
As Iran heavily criticized the Khamenei cartoons by Charlie Hebdo, a group of hackers who called themselves "Holy Souls" posted on an online forum claiming they had access to the sensitive personal information of the 200,000 subscribers of Charlie Hebdo.
The hacker group also said in their post that they would sell these details for 20 bitcoins worth around $470,000. A sample of the leaked data was released later on and verified by the French newspaper Le Monde.
"This information, obtained by the Iranian actor, could put the magazine's subscribers at risk for online or physical targeting by extremist organizations.” Researchers at Microsoft said.
Iranian hackers used social media accounts with fake or stolen identities to further expand their operation and criticize the Khamenei caricatures. Microsoft said two social media accounts pretending to be a Charlie Hebdo editor and a technology executive posted the leaked data before Twitter deleted them. Twitter’s team also did not immediately respond to a comment.
