Chinese hackers steal Israeli Iron Dome missile data

A Chinese hacking group has been accused of stealing data from Israel’s billion-dollar Iron Dome missile system, The Guardian reports.


The state-sponsored Comment Crew hacking group, thought to operate out of China, was responsible for attacks from 2011 onwards on three Israeli defence technology companies Elisra Group, Israel Aerospace Industries (IAI) and Rafael Advanced Defense Systems (Rads) all involved with the Iron Dome project.


The Iron Dome is Israel’s advanced anti-missile defence system – part funded to the tune of $1bn by the US government. It fires missiles to intercept rockets and artillery shells fired from between 2.5 miles and 43 miles away into populated areas, commonly described as a missile shield.

The revelation comes as cyber attacks against Israel have intensified during its current conflict with Palestine, including recent attacks defacing Israel Railways and hospital websites and denial of service attacks which slow Israeli’s internet connections, according to Dina Beer, managing director of the Israeli Internet Association, talking to Bloomberg.