Iran beefed up cyber capabilities after 2010 Stuxnet attack: US general

A senior US Air Force official says Iran has beefed up its cyber capabilities in reaction to a 2010 cyber attack with the Stuxnet computer virus on its nuclear facility, stressing it will be a “force to be reckoned with” in the future.

According to Press TV, General William Shelton, who heads Air Force Space Command said on Thursday: “The Iranian situation is difficult to talk about. It’s clear that the Natanz [nuclear facility] situation generated reaction by them. They are going to be a force to be reckoned with, with the potential capabilities that they will develop over the years and the potential threat that will represent to the United States.”
The general, however, refused to comment on Iran’s ability to disrupt US government computer networks.
On January 10, Iran’s mission to the United Nations dismissed allegations that the Iranian government has been behind cyber attacks on the US banking system.
In a statement, the mission said that the Islamic Republic condemns any use of malware that targets important service-providing institutes by violating the national sovereignty of states.
The US Center for Strategic and International Studies (CSIS) had claimed that Iran orchestrated cyber attacks on US financial institutions.
Iran has been the target of several cyber attacks over the past few years.
In June, 2012, the New York Times reported that US President Barack Obama had secretly ordered a cyber attack with the Stuxnet computer virus against Iran to sabotage the country’s nuclear energy program.