New Stuxnet clues suggest sabotage of Iran's uranium enrichment program

New Stuxnet clues suggest sabotage of Iran's uranium enrichment program

www.computerworld.com...

Computerworld - Researchers have uncovered new clues that the Stuxnet worm may have been created to sabotage Iranian attempts to turn uranium into atomic bomb-grade fuel.

According to Eric Chien, one of three Symantec researchers who have dug into Stuxnet, the worm targets industrial systems that control very high speed electrical motors, such as those used to spin gas centrifuges, one of the ways uranium can be enriched into fissionable material.

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I have alway been fascinated with this particular piece of malware. I previously posted about it at www.abovetopsecret.com... but I thought this latest research deserved its own thread.

It seems that the payload for this particular malware was pretty specific as to what it would do to a certain piece of equipment, most likely to be some sort of centrifuge.

Stuxnet looks for devices called "frequency converter drives" connected to a SCADA system, said Chien. Such drives take electrical current from a power grid, then change the output to a much higher frequency, typically 600 Hz or higher.

"The high-frequency output from the frequency changer is fed to the high-speed gas centrifuge drive motors (the speed of an AC motor is proportional to the frequency of the supplied current)," states the Federation of American Scientists (FAS) in an explanation of uranium production on its Web site. "The centrifuge power supplies must operate at high efficiency, provide low harmonic distortion, and provide precise control of the output frequency."

More and more evidence appears to point to this being a weapon against the Iranian nuclear enrichment program. But, the question remains, Who is behind it?

www.computerworld.com...
(visit the link for the full news article)

Originally posted by BomSquad
......More and more evidence appears to point to this being a weapon against the Iranian nuclear enrichment program. But, the question remains, Who is behind it?

Obviously Israel......I would bet my last dollar that it's them......so now they are cyber-terrorists, great addition to their resume.

reply to post by Alpha Grey


I agree, that at first glance, Israel is the most obvious answer, followed closely by the US. But maybe that answer is too obvious? (or maybe I have been reading about conspiracies too much? lol)

Who would benefit most from pointing the finger at Israel, if Israel is not the source of the malware?

We could "what if?" this to death, but I think it is a legitimate question.

I would love to get to the bottom of this too.

I know the subject has been approached before, and I will be the first to put my hands up and state that I know nothing of virus programming, but if what has been spun in the media is true then surely this is warfare at the highest level, surely beyond the capabilities of your average hacker.

I would have thought that the point of entry to the systems would have been a backdoor left open by the original designers for just such an attack.

The story seemed to just sort of die off, there must be a lot of people still angry about this attack, and a lot of people that felt a benefit.

I will keep watching, if only out of curiosity.

Regards S_G

Originally posted by xSMOKING_GUNx

I would have thought that the point of entry to the systems would have been a backdoor left open by the original designers for just such an attack.

Beyond that, maybe trafficking the route to the backdoor to a malicious counterpart.

reply to post by xSMOKING_GUNx


I agree, interest seemed to drop off dramatically after about a week. I would guess either genuine interest faded, or the agency that created the malware urged the media to forget what they heard about it.

I just find it interesting that the media inst pursuing this. When the identity of the agency behind the "attack" is found, it would be a major scandal. Scandal = $$$ for the media, so it would seem in their best interest to pursue this full bore, but they don't seem to be....

I find it curious...

Some additional articles came out today in regards to this new development...

Stuxnet study suggests Iran enrichment aim: experts

Stuxnet worm possibly made to cripple Iran centrifuges

Stuxnet Worm Did Likely Target Iranian Nuclear Facilities

due to references of Jewish Biblical figures, one would think this is entirely Israel's doing, but they lack the funding and computer know-how. Im not saying that they are bad with computers, im just saying they needed an outside helper.... America... The language and modus operandi of the virus are clearly American, but the targets are Israeli picked. It was also spread by an Israeli contracting company. So its America AND Israel, working together on this.

reply to post by BomSquad


Ahmadinejad is now admitting that Stuxnet took out the centrifuges.

President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad admitted Monday that "several" uranium enrichment centrifuges were damaged by "software installed in electronic equipment," amid speculation Iran's nuclear activities had come under cyberattack.

"They were able to create problems on a limited basis for some of our centrifuges by software installed in electronic equipment," Ahmadinejad told reporters when asked whether Iran's nuclear programme had been affected.

"Our specialists stopped that and they will not be able to do it again," he added without elaborating on the software thought to have been used.

www.france24.com...

On that last line...
Yeah right.

Researchers say Stuxnet was deployed against Iran in 2007

Researchers at Symantec Corp (SYMC.O) have uncovered a version of the Stuxnet computer virus that was used to attack Iran's nuclear program in November 2007, two years earlier than previously thought.

The virus was being developed early as 2005, when Iran was still setting up its uranium enrichment facility, said Symantec researcher Liam O'Murchu. That facility went online in 2007.

"It is really mind blowing that they were thinking about creating a project like that in 2005," O'Murchu told Reuters in ahead of the report's release at the RSA security conference, an event attended by more than 20,000 security professionals, in San Francisco on Tuesday.

Symantec had previously uncovered evidence that planning for Stuxnet began in 2007. The New York Times reported in June 2012 that the impetus for the project dated back to 2006, when U.S. President George W. Bush was looking for options to slow Iran's nuclear ambitions.

Seems that the attack started a lot sooner than was suspected...