Flame was devised by U.S., Israel, officials confirm
Baku, June 20 (AZERTAC). The United States and Israel jointly developed a sophisticated computer virus nicknamed Flame that collected critical intelligence in preparation for cyber-sabotage attacks aimed at slowing Iran`s ability to develop a nuclear weapon, according to several Western officials with knowledge of the effort. The emerging details provide new clues about what is believed to be the first sustained campaign of cyber-sabotage against a U.S. adversary.
There had been speculation that the United States had a role in developing Flame, but the collaboration on the virus between Washington and Israel has not been previously confirmed. The massive piece of malware was designed to secretly map Iran`s computer networks and monitor the computers of Iranian officials, sending back a steady stream of intelligence used to enable an ongoing cyberwarfare campaign, according to the officials.
The effort, involving the National Security Agency, the CIA and Israel`s military, has included the use of destructive software such as the so-called Stuxnet virus to cause malfunctions in Iran`s nuclear enrichment equipment.
“This is about preparing the battlefield for another type of covert action,” said one former high-ranking U.S. intelligence official, who added that Flame and Stuxnet were elements of a broader assault that continues. “Cyber collection against the Iranian program is way further down the road than this.” Flame became publicly known last month when Iran reported that it had detected a series of cyberattacks on its oil industry. The disruption was directed by Israel in a unilateral operation that apparently caught its U.S. partners off guard, according to the U.S. and Western officials, speaking on the condition of anonymity.
Commercial security researchers last week said that Flame contained some of the same code as Stuxnet. Experts described the overlap as DNA-like evidence that the two sets of malware were parallel projects run by the same entity.
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