Pro-Iran hacking group targets California tech company in flurry of attacks
San Jose-based eBay was hammered by a massive cyberattack allegedly carried out by a pro-Iran hacking group that’s now threatening some of world’s biggest tech companies.
The shadowy “Islamic Cyber Resistance in Iraq – 313 Team” claimed responsibility for the assault on eBay, which reportedly triggered widespread outages and left users unable to browse listings, make purchases or complete transactions for nearly two days last month.
Cybersecurity analysts said the attack bore the hallmarks of a Distributed Denial of Service, or DDoS, assault — a tactic where hackers flood a company’s servers with fake traffic until systems buckle under the pressure.
The widespread outages left users unable to browse listings. Getty Images
The group bragged online that it used “rapid fire” attacks designed to keep eBay’s infrastructure under constant strain, while also warning that more American companies were in the crosshairs.
“There is a simple way out,” one message directed at eBay read. “We have emailed you with our Session Contact ID. If you fail to reach out, we will continue our assault. You are losing money by the minute, stop being fools.”
The attack reportedly cost the online marketplace as much as $200 million per day in disrupted transactions as services slowly came back online.
But the hackers didn’t stop there.
The attack reportedly cost the online marketplace as much as $200 million per day. terovesalainen – stock.adobe.com
Spotify acknowledged widespread problems Tuesday. SOPA Images/LightRocket via Getty Images
The same crew later claimed responsibility for an attack on Spotify that sparked thousands of outage complaints from furious users.
“We carried out a massive cyber attack targeting Spotify’s main servers, causing a major disruption to the website and completely disabling the application,” the group wrote on Telegram.
The hackers escalated their threats hours later, boasting: “We are maintaining a complete shutdown of Spotify’s core internal servers and keeping the login interface disabled. Major corporations will not escape punishment. The hand of retaliation will reach you.”
The shadowy “Islamic Cyber Resistance in Iraq – 313 Team” claimed responsibility. Nasser Ishtayeh/SOPA Images/Shutterstock
Cybersecurity analysts said it bore the hallmarks of a DDoS attack. REUTERS
Spotify acknowledged widespread problems with its app and web player while saying it was investigating the disruption.
The hacking group has also claimed attempted attacks on WordPress and Goodreads, while previously taking credit for disruptions targeting Microsoft, Amazon, Dropbox and X.
