Anonymous Hackers Threaten To Expose IDF’s ‘Top Secret Projects’
The Anonymous hacking group has released a video claiming to have breached Israel’s military, stealing some of its “top secret” documents…
Anonymous claims IDF has been hacked
Two weeks after Israel’s Justice Ministry acknowledged a cybersecurity breach, which may—according to those claiming responsibility—have stolen hundreds of gigabytes of data, the Anonymous hacking collective says it has now breached Israel Defense Forces (IDF) itself, a much more critical target.
In a video released on X on April 18, Anonymous posted that “after hacking their justice ministry, today we want to introduce their terrorist army to the world.”
The cyber dimension to the Gaza conflict has received limited coverage given the nature of the fighting on the ground, but the latest escalation has seen Iran step out from behind its proxies, and so two of the world’s most cyber-active governments are now engaging much more publicly. This includes unverified claims by one Iranian hacking group to have breached Israeli radar technologies.
For its part, Israel’s offensive cyber capabilities dwarf anything Iran can muster, even though Tehran is steadily enhancing its skills, and so the prospect of digital escalation as the ballistic engagement quiets down is inevitable.
None of which is linked to these more theatrical hacking claims directed at Israel’s military. Anonymous is best viewed as an umbrella agenda, with self-styled members initiating and co-ordinating activity which is then promoted. It would be wrong to see this as a globally organized group with any kind of structure. The latest claims seem to emanate from a pro-Palestinian group calling itself Anonymous for Justice.
The Jerusalem Post reports that “according to IDF security assessments, the likelihood of an actual breach is minimal… The IDF’s computer system is tightly secured and classified at various levels.” The Post suggests that if there was a breach, it was more likely to be “obtained from civilian computers.”
The Anonymous video claims that breached data includes “the identity of the generals, military bases, military contracts and top secret projects,” with a total of 20GB. of data across more than 230,000 files. The video also tells IDF the hacking operation was “done with the help of some freedom seekers from your army.”
Israel’s government is on a high cyber alert, and has warned that it expects activities to uptick post Ramadan. The recent clashes with Iran will have intensified those threats, building on the already significant backdrop of always-on cyber activity across the region. As on the kinetic side, there are varying levels of cyber weaponry and decisions to escalate will be just as fraught.
As to this particular claim, what comes from this trove of leaked data remains to be seen—in reality, its substance will only become clear if there is highly sensitive data made public that self-evidently comes from secure military systems. The screenshots in the video cannot be verified, nor is their level of protective marking clear.
What will be more interesting over the coming weeks will be any signs of offensive cyber campaigns on either side becoming public, and which if any are acknowledged.
I have approached IDF for any comments on the alleged hack.
