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Iran Operated Fake Human-Resources Firm to Root Out Unfriendly Spies, Researchers Say

FILE PHOTO: Figurines with computers are seen in front of USA and Iran flags in this illustration taken, September 10, 2022. REUTERS/Dado Ruvic/Illustration/File Photo
FILE PHOTO: Figurines with computers are seen in front of USA and Iran flags in this illustration taken, September 10, 2022. REUTERS/Dado Ruvic/Illustration/File Photo
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Iran Operated Fake Human-Resources Firm to Root Out Unfriendly Spies, Researchers Say

FILE PHOTO: Figurines with computers are seen in front of USA and Iran flags in this illustration taken, September 10, 2022. REUTERS/Dado Ruvic/Illustration/File Photo
FILE PHOTO: Figurines with computers are seen in front of USA and Iran flags in this illustration taken, September 10, 2022. REUTERS/Dado Ruvic/Illustration/File Photo

An Iranian hacking group ran a fake professional recruiting business to lure national security officials across Iran, Syria and Lebanon into a cyber espionage trap, according to new research by US cybersecurity firm Mandiant, a division of Alphabet's Google Cloud.
Researchers said the hackers are loosely connected to a group known as APT42 or Charming Kitten, which was recently accused of hacking the US presidential campaign of Republican candidate Donald Trump. APT42 is widely attributed to an intelligence division of the Iranian Revolutionary Guard, an expansive military organization based in Tehran. The FBI has said it is investigating APT42’s ongoing efforts to interfere in the 2024 US election, Reuters reported.
The mission uncovered by Mandiant dates back to at least 2017 and was active until recently. At different times, the Iranians made their operation appear as if it was controlled by Israelis. Analysts say the likely purpose of the impersonation was to identify individuals in the Middle East who were willing to sell secrets to Israel and other Western governments. It targeted military and intelligence staff associated with Iran’s allies in the region.
“The data collected by this campaign may support the Iranian intelligence apparatus in pinpointing individuals who are interested in collaborating with Iran’s perceived adversarial countries,” the Mandiant report said. “The collected data may be leveraged to uncover human intelligence (HUMINT) operations conducted against Iran and to persecute any Iranians suspected to be involved in these operations.”
Iran's mission to the United Nations did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
Mandiant found that the digital spies used a network of websites impersonating human resources companies to manipulate Farsi-speaking targets. The bogus firms were named VIP Human Solutions, also known as VIP Recruitment, Optima HR and Kandovan HR, among others. They leveraged dozens of inauthentic online profiles on Telegram, Twitter, YouTube and social media platform Virasty, which is popular in Iran, to promote the front companies. Nearly all the associated internet accounts have since been removed.
“VIP Recruitment, a center for recruiting respected military personnel into the army, security services and intelligence from Syria and Hezbollah, Lebanon,” said a statement on one of the websites. “Join us to help each other impact the world. Our duty is to protect your privacy.”
The hackers cast a wide net by using various social media platforms to disseminate links about their fake HR scheme. It is unclear how many targets ultimately fell for the ruse. The collected data, which included addresses, contact details and other resume-related data, could still be exploited in the future, Mandiant said.

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US Forces Ready with a 'Range of Options' to Deal with South China Sea Aggression, US Admiral Says

US Indo-Pacific Command Commander Admiral Samuel Paparo, left, and Philippines military chief Gen. Romeo Brawner Jr., shake hands after a press conference on the Mutual Defense Board-Security Engagement Board held at the Philippine Military Academy in Baguio, northern Philippines on Thursday, Aug. 29, 2024. (AP Photo/Aaron Favila)
US Indo-Pacific Command Commander Admiral Samuel Paparo, left, and Philippines military chief Gen. Romeo Brawner Jr., shake hands after a press conference on the Mutual Defense Board-Security Engagement Board held at the Philippine Military Academy in Baguio, northern Philippines on Thursday, Aug. 29, 2024. (AP Photo/Aaron Favila)
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US Forces Ready with a 'Range of Options' to Deal with South China Sea Aggression, US Admiral Says

US Indo-Pacific Command Commander Admiral Samuel Paparo, left, and Philippines military chief Gen. Romeo Brawner Jr., shake hands after a press conference on the Mutual Defense Board-Security Engagement Board held at the Philippine Military Academy in Baguio, northern Philippines on Thursday, Aug. 29, 2024. (AP Photo/Aaron Favila)
US Indo-Pacific Command Commander Admiral Samuel Paparo, left, and Philippines military chief Gen. Romeo Brawner Jr., shake hands after a press conference on the Mutual Defense Board-Security Engagement Board held at the Philippine Military Academy in Baguio, northern Philippines on Thursday, Aug. 29, 2024. (AP Photo/Aaron Favila)

American forces are ready with a “range of options” to deal with increasing acts of aggression in the disputed South China Sea if ordered to carry them out jointly and after consultations with treaty ally the Philippines, a US admiral said Thursday.

US Indo-Pacific Command chief Adm. Samuel Paparo, who heads the biggest number of combat forces outside the US mainland, refused to provide details of the contingency options.

According to The AP, Paparo's comments came when asked at a news conference what the longtime treaty allies could do to deal with China’s so-called gray-zone tactics in the disputed waters.

The “gray-zone tactics” refer to types of assault, like water cannon fire and the blocking and ramming of rival ships in the disputed waters, that are under the threshold of an actual armed attack and wouldn't allow the Philippines to invoke its 1951 Mutual Defense Treaty with the US The treaty obligates either country to help the other in case of an armed external attack.

"We certainly have prepared a range of options and USINDOPACOM stands ready, if so called, after consultations in accordance with the treaty to execute those shoulder to shoulder with our ally,” Paparo said.

Detailing those US military options would allow “the potential adversary” to “build a countermeasure to those,” he said.

Paparo held a joint news conference with Armed Forces of the Philippines chief Gen. Romero Brawner Jr., after both led an annual meeting in the northern Philippine mountain city of Baguio to discuss security challenges and military plans. They include the Balikatan — Tagalog for shoulder to shoulder — the treaty allies’ largest combat exercises, which in April involved more than 16,000 American and Filipinos forces and were partly staged in the South China Sea.

In response to a question, Paparo repeated that the US military is open, after treaty consultations with the Philippines, to escorting Philippine ships in the South China Sea amid a spike in hostilities between Beijing and Manila in the disputed waters. Such a prospect would risk putting US Navy ships in direct collisions with those of China.

Washington and Beijing have been on a collision course over China’s increasingly assertive actions to defend its territorial claims in the South China Sea, and Beijing’s stated goal of annexing Taiwan, by force if necessary.

Brawner said the Philippines could still fend for itself in the disputed waters, where hostilities with the Chinese coast guard, navy and suspected militia ships have alarmingly spiked since last year.

“If we exhaust all the options and nothing works, then that’s the time we can ask for help,” Brawner told reporters.

When Filipino forces in the disputed waters “are at the verge of dying,” because food supplies were being blocked by Chinese forces, “then that’s the time that we are going to seek the help of the United States,” Brawner said, but added that “we still have a lot of options."

During combat exercises by US and Philippine forces in April, the US military transported a mid-range missile system to the northern Philippines, angering China, which warned that the missile system can trigger a regional arms race and endanger regional stability. Beijing demanded that the US missile system, which can threaten mainland China, be pulled out of the Philippines.

Paparo and Brawner refused to say on Thursday if and when the missile system would be flown out of the Philippines. Brawner thanked the US military for transporting the high-tech weaponry to the country, saying Filipino forces were being exposed to advance defense equipment that the Philippine military plan to acquire in the future.

"Just like what we did with the Stingers and with the Javelins, we start training already even if we don’t have them yet in our inventory,” Brawner said.