Iranian cyberattack may be behind false rocket warning sirens in Jerusalem

False rocket warning sirens that were activated across parts of both Jerusalem and Eilat on Sunday evening may have been caused by a cyberattack, the Israel National Cyber Directorate (INCD) confirmed on Monday morning.

During the evening on Sunday, rocket sirens sounded in Eilat and across several Jerusalem neighborhoods including Talpiot, Katamon and Beit Hakerem for almost an hour. The reason was said to be a system malfunction by the IDF, although the cause of it was unknown.

However, on Monday morning, Army Radio reported that the INCD suspected that a cyberattack was behind the system malfunction, which they then confirmed shortly after the initial report was published.

According to unconfirmed reports in Hebrew media, the cyberattack is thought to be of Iranian origin.

The directorate suspects that the attack was directed against the municipal siren systems rather than through the IDF Home Front Command alert system, which is how the attackers managed to activate the alarms.

The relevant authorities were instructed to take preventative measures against the threat.

Speaking to Army Radio on Monday morning, former IDF Deputy Chief of Staff MK Yair Golan (Meretz) responded to the report, saying that Israel is preparing itself for Iranian attempts to harm the country through cyber warfare.

“The Home Front Command’s alarm system was not breached, the municipal siren system was – but it is very worrying and disturbing,” he said. “If there is a breach point there, it should be closed immediately.”

This is a developing story.