Iranian national extradited to US over alleged $3.4 billion state-backed hacking campaign in rare legal win for law enforcement
An Iranian-Turkish man has been extradited from Montenegro to the U.S. over his alleged role in a hacking campaign that targeted hundreds of universities, companies, and government agencies and stole more than 31 TB of academic data.
An Iranian national, Amir Barati, has been extradited to the United States from Montenegro in a rare legal victory for law enforcement. The extradition, which took place on October 1, is believed to be the first of its kind involving an individual accused of state-sponsored hacking. Barati, along with 16 other Iranians, was indicted on wire and computer fraud charges in August and is set to face these charges in the U.S. Southern District of New York.
The indictment alleges that Barati, as part of the Mabna Institute, a state-backed hacking group based in Iran, was responsible for a multi-year cyber campaign that targeted over 144 U.S. universities, 42 private companies, five government agencies, and numerous organizations worldwide. The hackers stole over 31 terabytes of academic data and intellectual property, causing damages estimated at over $3.4 billion.
This extradition marks a significant win for U.S. law enforcement, as accused Iranian hackers are rarely brought to American courts.
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