Israel killed 4 senior IRGC commanders and 9 nuclear scientists in the opening volley of its attack on Iran. While Iran has made impressive strides toward technological independence in defense and critical infrastructure, Israel’s 8200 military intelligence appears to have exploited a critical weak point: Western consumer-grade electronics and software. Despite years of sanctions and the state’s efforts to promote alternatives to Western tech companies offered by domestic or friendly nations, tens of millions of Iranians continue to use their products. The consequences are now clear.
The essence of the vulnerability is that iPhones and Android phones provide real-time GPS tracking, which can be exploited by malicious actors (in this case, Israel) to obtain the exact coordinates of targets. Even if the targets are not using phones, they can still be monitored using data collected from the devices of family members or friends, as well as from smart TVs or vehicles. If Israel were to access the data of secondary contacts through a single unsecured device, it could install Pegasus spyware, which would turn them into bugs equipped with a mobile camera and microphone.
Google, Microsoft, and Meta (Facebook, Instagram, WhatsApp) leak metadata that intelligence agencies use to create behavioral profiles of targets. In 2013, Edward Snowden unveiled the PRISM program, which the NSA used to access the servers of big tech companies to extract any information they needed. Western (Ericsson) telecommunications hardware, installed in Iran before 2018 but still serviced, may have provided Israel with another backdoor to exploit a key digital infrastructure. Exploiting these vulnerabilities, the 8200 unit is able to methodically compile the routes, movements, work and home addresses of targets, and even map the interiors of their homes for future attacks.
Iran’s cyber command reportedly instructed officials to avoid devices connected to telecommunications networks altogether, indicating that the country is still investigating vulnerabilities in its digital infrastructure.
Translated and edited by Alex Kada