(Image courtesy of www.dhs.gov)

Mississippi Congressman, Bennie Thompson, Chairman of the Committee on Homeland Security, released the following statement on news from the Department of Homeland Security’s Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency (CISA) warning of increased malicious cyber activity from Iran:

 “This weekend, Director Krebs issued an alert putting critical infrastructure owners and operators on notice that they need to remain vigilant in defending their networks as Iran increases its use of cyber exploits.  I echo that warning, and I urge CISA to assess whether it has the capacity to meet the increased demand for its services that this alert is likely to spur.  Defending government networks and private sector industries will require that the full resources of the Federal government are brought to bear to complement private sector efforts.  I am committed to working with CISA to ensure that it is in the position to carry out its important mission.”

Alert from DHS Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency Director Christopher Krebs:

In response to reports of an increase in cybersecurity threats, the Department of Homeland Security’s (DHS) Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency (CISA) Director Christopher C. Krebs issued the following statement:

“CISA is aware of a recent rise in malicious cyber activity directed at United States industries and government agencies by Iranian regime actors and proxies. We will continue to work with our intelligence community and cybersecurity partners to monitor Iranian cyber activity, share information, and take steps to keep America and our allies safe.

“Iranian regime actors and proxies are increasingly using destructive ‘wiper’ attacks, looking to do much more than just steal data and money. These efforts are often enabled through common tactics like spear phishing, password spraying, and credential stuffing. What might start as an account compromise, where you think you might just lose data, can quickly become a situation where you’ve lost your whole network.

“In times like these it’s important to make sure you’ve shored up your basic defenses, like using multi-factor authentication, and if you suspect an incident – take it seriously and act quickly. You can find other tips and best practices for staying safe online here.

“Anyone who has relevant information or suspects a compromise should immediately contact us at [email protected].”