The truce does not turn off the screens
Forget the calm. While governments talk about pauses, the keyboards remain on. The hacker group Handala, linked to Iran, has just made it clear that its war against the United States and Israel is something else. It does not depend on military agreements.
“We did not start this war, but we will be the ones to end it,” they wrote in
His message is a splash of cold water for those who thought that a two-week truce would bring complete relief. Handala only promises a temporary pause against US targets. Israel remains in the crosshairs. And Washington knows that the respite will be brief.An expanding front
Alarm bells are already ringing in US security agencies. The FBI, NSA and CISA issued a joint warning: pro-Iran hackers have infiltrated critical systems.
We’re talking about the brains that control ports, power plants and water networks. The so-called programmable logic controllers. The objective is clear: disrupt everyday life and demonstrate vulnerability.
Markus Mueller of Nozomi Networks puts it bluntly:
“With a ceasefire, we will likely see an expansion of cyber activity in both scale and scope.”
His prognosis is gloomy. The pause in physical fighting could give these groups time to reorient themselves. From attacking direct regional targets, they would go on to infiltrate organizations connected to the war effort: data centers, technology companies, defense contractors.
The risk is a high-profile attack. Something like the hack of Stryker, the medical giant that Handala attacked last month claiming retaliation for dead Iranian children.
So far, the attacks have been numerous but low impact. More symbolic than catastrophic. They serve to raise morale among supporters and remind the opponent of their vulnerability.
But the dynamics can change. Mueller warns that groups based in Iran or Russia could try to bypass the truce with a significant digital strike against the US, seeking to capture the attention of the American public.
The history gives food for thought. In addition to the Stryker case and the hacking of former FBI Deputy Director Kash Patel’s personal email (of which old photos were leaked), they are linked to attempts to install malware on Israeli phones and attack infrastructure in Israel, Saudi Arabia and Kuwait.
The FBI’s response has been forceful: they seized four web domains used by Handala to spread his message. It’s a game of cat and mouse that knows no respite.
The conclusion is uncomfortable but clear. In the 21st century, conflicts are no longer fought only on battlefields or diplomatic halls. They are released on servers and social networks. And there, the ceasefire has not yet been signed.
