Hacktivist group claims cyberattack on Iran’s Bank Sepah

The hacker group Predatory Sparrow claimed responsibility on Tuesday for a cyberattack targeting Bank Sepah, one of Iran’s oldest financial institutions with ties to the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) and the Army.

The group alleged it had “destroyed all data” at the bank.The claim comes amid reports of widespread banking disruptions in Iran.

Several Bank Sepah branches were closed on Tuesday, and customers told Iran International they were unable to access their accounts.

Bank Sepah has 1,800 branches in Iran and others in Britain, France, Germany and Italy. The United States imposed sanctions on Bank Sepah in 2019 after it withdrew from Iran’s 2015 nuclear deal.

Users also reported that cards issued by Kosar and Ansar -- both linked to Iran’s military --banks were not functioning. Ansar was also under US sanctions.

Iranian authorities have not commented on the outages or the cyberattack. However, IRGC’s Fars news said that the issue at Sepah Bank will be resolved within a few hours

Predatory Sparrow, which has previously claimed cyber operations against Iranian steel plants and fuel stations, said in a social media post that Bank Sepah had been used to finance military programs and circumvent international sanctions.

The group, which Iran has previously accused of having foreign backing, notably from Israel, said it had targeted the bank for its alleged role in supporting Iran’s missile and nuclear efforts.