A small power plant in Britain was shut down for four days in July after a cyberattack reportedly carried out by hackers linked to Iran, The Telegraph reported Sunday.
The incident occurred around the time US authorities warned that Iranian cyber actors were targeting water facilities in at least seven states, the newspaper said.
The Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency, the FBI and the Environmental Protection Agency had blamed Iranian-linked actors for the attacks.
A British government spokesperson declined to attribute responsibility for the reported outage or identify the facility, saying it involved “a small-scale energy generator” and posed no threat to the wider power system.
“The UK has a highly resilient energy system,” the spokesperson said in a statement cited by CNBC. “We work closely with the energy sector to protect infrastructure and ensure the highest security standards.”
The Department for Energy Security and Net Zero briefed energy executives and advised companies on further measures, while also updating cybersecurity regulations, the government said.
The report comes amid heightened concern over Iranian cyber activity following the outbreak of war between the United States, Israel and Iran on February 28.
On August 18, the US Justice Department charged 17 Iranians over what it described as a “massive cyber theft campaign” conducted on behalf of Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps and other Iranian entities.
Iran has also been targeted by cyberattacks. In June, blockchain analytics firm Elliptic said more than $90 million was stolen from Nobitex, Iran’s largest cryptocurrency exchange.
The funds were transferred to wallets containing anti-government messages referencing the IRGC.
The pro-Israel hacking group Gonjeshke Darande, or “Predatory Sparrow,” claimed responsibility.
