U.S. military publicly links Iran to MuddyWater hacker group

Jan. 12 (UPI) -- The U.S. military publicly disclosed multiple tools on Wednesday that it says "Iranian intelligence actors are using in networks around the world," linking the country to a known hacker group.

U.S. Cyber Command said it "has identified and disclosed multiple open-source tools that Iranian intelligence actors are using" internationally.

The unit is based at Fort Meade, Md., as part of the National Security Agency.

The MuddyWater hacking group is well known within the industry, according to the Congressional Research Service. Now, the U.S. government is linking it directly to Iran, calling it a "subordinate element" of the Iranian Ministry of Intelligence and Security.

U.S. Cyber Command said the Iranian ministry "conducts domestic surveillance to identify regime opponents. It also surveils anti-regime activists abroad through its network of agents placed in Iran's embassies."

In a release, Cyber Command outlines a number of techniques the group has used to gain and maintain access to victim networks. It says MuddyWater has primarily targeted Middle Eastern countries, but has also attacked those in Europe and North America, without going into further detail.

By Wednesday evening, the Iranian government had not issued any public statements in response to the U.S. accusations.