Flame On!

A new entrant in the cyberwar against Iran seems to have been detected:

A massive, highly sophisticated piece of malware has been newly found infecting systems in Iran and elsewhere and is believed to be part of a well-coordinated, ongoing, state-run cyberespionage operation.

The malware, discovered by Russia-based anti-virus firm Kaspersky Lab, is an espionage toolkit that has been infecting targeted systems in Iran, Lebanon, Syria, Sudan, the Israeli Occupied Territories and other countries in the Middle East and North Africa for at least two years.

Dubbed “Flame” by Kaspersky, the malicious code dwarfs Stuxnet in size – the groundbreaking infrastructure-sabotaging malware that is believed to have wreaked havoc on Iran’s nuclear program in 2009 and 2010. Although Flame has both a different purpose and composition than Stuxnet, and appears to have been written by different programmers, its complexity, the geographic scope of its infections and its behavior indicate strongly that a nation-state is behind Flame, rather than common cyber-criminals — marking it as yet another tool in the growing arsenal of cyberweaponry.

And we have an old chestnut buried deep in the piece:

Kaspersky discovered the malware about two weeks ago after the United Nations’ International Telecommunications Union asked the Lab to look into reports in April that computers belonging to the Iranian Oil Ministry and the Iranian National Oil Company had been hit with malware that was stealing and deleting information from the systems. The malware was named alternatively in news articles as “Wiper” and “Viper,” a discrepancy that may be due to a translation mixup.

Yes, it was the viper and it was here to vipe your vindows.

Comments

[GED Online]

Words can't say how much I appreciate what you've mentioned here... Thanks a lot for this info.

[PDinDetroit]

Ve Vill get the TRUTH out of your COMPUTERS Vhether you like it or not...

From a Reuters Article on this:

Privately held Webroot said its automatic virus-scanning engines detected Flame in December 2007, but that it did not pay much attention because the code was not particularly menacing.

That is partly because it was easy to discover and remove, said Webroot Vice President Joe Jaroch. "There are many more dangerous threats out there today," he said.

So, are we so sure that this is the 3rd when it might have been the 1st instead?

[rse]

So does the UN union want the malware gone so it doesn't interfere with its global Broadband initiative?

The one Columbia prof Jeffrey Sachs is involved in when he is not helping with the UN's first World Happiness Report?

I have the UN on my mind today. LUN is why.

Very clever TM. The ve that are vatching will know which side has the sense of humor. Unfortunately it is the other side with the taxpayer funded pot of gold for planning purposes.

[AliceH]

Ah, I remember hearing that story many times at the annual Family/Boy Scout Troop camp out. It never gets old. (For the cheeseheads, camp site was at Scuppernong, I think, somewhere in the Kettle Morraine. Everyone fully kitted up through Laake and Joy's.)

[mockmook]

Yes, isn't it great that the UN is making sure the Iranians completely understand the threat.

[Steve]

So when the arabs retaliate against the Israelis for waging cyber war against them, will they attack Israel, or a much softer and accessible target, American citizens?

[AliceH]

Just what "arabs" are you talking about, Steve?

[mockmook]

Yep, Steve, again you prove your genius.

If there is another terrorist attack on the USA, it is Israel's fault.

Why am I reminded of a certain regime that blamed all of its problems on a religious minority?

[Jim Eagle]

Obviously, the on-line high school diploma people think JOM is a target rich environment with all the inane posting by DGW (aka BF), BuBu, DuDa and KaKa.

[mockmook]

JiB, doesn't Steve get an honorable mention? Or, is "he" an alias for one of the above?

[NK]

In fact-- chances are that certain Sunni Arabs, the House of Saud and the Gulf Sheiks just to name a few, are probably paying for the cost of the software sabotage of the Mullahs' Shia Bomb. Those 'Arabs' have as much interest as anyone is stopping the Mullahs from trying to bring back the 12th Iman and evening the score for old Ali.

[Steve]

"... Why am I reminded of a certain regime that blamed all of its problems on a religious minority? ..."

Oh I see, the republican party now is to be purged of anyone who does not support endless foreign wars.

Why exactly does the US side with the Israelis against the Palestinians in the territory dispute of those two foreign peoples? Where do we stand on Georgia and Ossetia?

[Jim Eagle]

OT: Texas votes today and Dr. Tim Stanley has endorsed this guy for Congress.

MIchael Williams

Impressive enough to give Maxine Waters a heart attack, I'll bet:)

[Steve]

"... Just what "arabs" are you talking about, Steve? ..."

true. What is a broader term that encompasses the muslim people of the region stretching from Iran to North Africa?

[Steve]

"... OT: Texas votes today and Dr. Tim Stanley has endorsed this guy for Congress.

MIchael Williams
..."

hopefully, for his constituents sake, he is legit. As the spanish population of Texas grows larger how soon before Texas votes democrat?

[Rob Crawford]

Oh I see, the republican party now is to be purged of anyone who does not support endless foreign wars.

No, just douchebags who side with barbarians.

[Melinda Romanoff]

Steve-

What's the primary difference between Shi'ia and Sunni Islam, and how does this influence the geo-political strategy of Islamic thought?

[Steve]

"... What's the primary difference between Shi'ia and Sunni Islam, and how does this influence the geo-political strategy of Islamic thought? ..."

how does this affect Americans?

[Melinda Romanoff]

Ah, a well thought out answer.

Thank you, and good-bye.

[Jim Eagle]

mockmook,

How the hell could I have missed Steve. Probably because he is just a cipher in a storm of sane intellect.

[Rob Crawford]

Weird, how an old hit-piece has echoes of another one:

a felon on parole, convicted in Dallas of hiring a hit man for a failed attempt to kill his employer with a car bomb in 1987

The person in question? The author of the book that accused Bush 43 of being arrested for cocaine possession. LUN.

What is it with the left and using bombers for dirty tricks?

[Steve]

"... No, just douchebags who side with barbarians. ..."

Define barbarian. Are the Chinese barbarians for the way they treat the North Koreans and Tibetans? Are the Mexican provinces that border the US barbaric? Or the gangs that roam the California prison system? Is Haiti a walk in the park? Why exactly is the US focusing its counter barbarian efforts on the barbarians around the MidEast section of the globe?

[Rob Crawford]

Texas is getting immigrants from Spain?

Who knew?

*plonk*

[Steve]

"...

Ah, a well thought out answer.

Thank you, and good-bye.
..."

see ya. We lost 6 more in Afg last week, you know. But Americans on the home front did their part. They thanked them for their service.

[narciso]

I was following a similar thread to that York was pulling. As we know from the wikileaks,
the Saudis and everyone along the emirates, were pulling their hair out, practically, at
the administration's nonchalance re the Iranian nuclear threat.

Now UNITCU, is doing the same good deed as the did the Times when burned that online database, of Iraqi regime documents, because it contained one nuclear weapons design, it posed a competition you see, to forming the narrative.

[Jane]

We lost 6 more in Afg last week, you know.

That's Obama's war. And he is certainly not a republican.

[GMAX]

Steve

Please name the statewide officeholders in Texas that are Democrats. We elect judges at every level here so there is a lot of statewide offices, so surely you can name one cant you ( I will help a dolt out, no you can not ).

[narciso]

A little flavor of what I'm talking about

http://news.sky.com/home/world-news/article/15837304

[narciso]

And the earlier precedent, I was speaking off

http://www.nytimes.com/2006/11/03/world/middleeast/03documents.html?pagewanted=print

[narciso]

And this is what was shut down;

http://www.fas.org/irp/eprint/iraqi/index.html

[Steve]

"... That's Obama's war. And he is certainly not a republican. ..."

I do not hear Romney saying anything about Afg. I do hear him saying Iran is a mortal enemy of the US. ( I think the US should impose trade sanctions on Iran and its significant trade partners ( China ) as long as it pursues a nuclear weapons program. And do the same to North Korea until it gives up its nukes. )

[narciso]

As I recall from Woodward's account, always a dodgy thing, the administration, shouldn't have been surprised about AQAP since the spring of 2009, the Asiri hit against Prince Nayef, having been one of the canaries in the coal mind, preceded by the attack on the Little Rock recruiting post;

http://www.nytimes.com/2012/05/29/world/obamas-leadership-in-war-on-al-qaeda.html?_r=2&pagewanted=all

[Threadkiller]

"I think the US should impose trade sanctions on Iran"

Those never lead to wars.

[narciso]

Really, they didn't know they used children, then what was the Omar Khadr case about, as well as other instances in Gitmo and other places,

[narciso]

Of course, this comes from Scott Shane, who should be getting a subpoena, for the Kirikaou
matter, being the dutiful drone from Sector 7g.

[Danube of Thought]

Minus 14 at Raz today.

Leads Romney by 1.

[Captain Hate]

Ugh, Jennifer Rubin on Laura Ingraham.

[Steve]

"... "I think the US should impose trade sanctions on Iran"

Those never lead to wars. ..."

China has had defacto trade sanctions against US imports and ownership of assets in the the country for many years now. The US does not threaten war against China in response.

The US can respond to wars started against it. The problem is the US is the one starting the wars. News today is the US is going to supply Italy with armed predator drones.

[Melinda Romanoff]

Excellent summary of the EU situation by Spengler (via Insty).

As well as a scorcher by Ambrose Evans-Pritchard.

[narciso]

When I think of the blown GID operation, this came to mind, revealing this, compromised the link that would have led to the 3/11 and 7/7
cells;

http://www.tnr.com/article/july-surprise

[Steve]

"... Excellent summary of the EU situation by Spengler (via Insty).

As well as a scorcher by Ambrose Evans-Pritchard.
..."

an advantage that Europe has is that it can expel the financially irresponsible countries from the Euro. Or the responsible countries can leave the currency.

By contrast the US has states and cities that are sucking it dry. How can the fiscally responsible states in the US firewall themselves off from the welfare states?

[narciso]

Durant was rather prescient about detente, and other dead ends;

http://www.raymondibrahim.com/11763/an-imaginary-president-appeases-a-very-real-islam

[Melinda Romanoff]

You've got that one backwards, too.

[Janet]

How can the fiscally responsible states in the US firewall themselves off from the welfare states?

Maybe the LA Times could do a story on that. Hahahahaaa...just jokin'.

[narciso]

It's a bit of a poser, Melinda but how does nationalizing Bankia, not simply 'enbiggen' the problem,

[NK]

MelR-- I am sticking by my August 2010 revelation; Germany, the Swiss, the Dutch and maybe the Danes form the New Mark, and leave the French to sort out the Euro. Hollande just makes that more inevitable as far as I'm concerned.

[NK]

Narc-- nationalization does worsen Spanish insolvency. But, in the short term Bankia failure was politically, and probably financially, worse.

[GMAX]

the Swiss have the Franc and the Danes the krone today. Why on Earth given the utopian experiment ( and that is what the Euro was ) gone terrible and tragically wrong ) would they willing allow themselves to become the foils to German policy? The Dutch maybe, they are used to surrending to the Germans in a hurry, and they are already on the Euro so a Mark may look like an improvement.

[GMAX]

Bankia I believe had both stockholders and subordinated debt holders all of whom are likely impaired or maybe nuked to save the insured deposit liabilities. And it saves the Republic of Spain cash on a payoff of depositors ( even if they severely limit or decline withdrawals from fleeing depositors in the short run to do so ).

[narciso]

Like Lehman bros level, contagion,

[matt]

The Euros are going to find out what they are all about over the next month or so. At present I believe even they don't know how this will all play out, which is one of the fundamental flaws of the Euro construct.

The Bankia number keeps on going up and there are half a dozen more banks in Spain in similar distress. The bad RE loans are drowning them, and the well of Spanish govt. funds is running dry.

Meanwhile, Italy, Portugal, and Ireland along with Greece will see higher, prohibitive borrowing costs accelerating their spirals.

Merkel is still resisting and Hollande is still proposing Eurobonds that will be worthless without German participation. After trillions spent on reunification and being sucked dry by Greece I can't see the Germans acceding to more profligacy.

Hollande has already conceded to the unions and is ready to spend and tax.

The structural reforms lasted a New York minute before the Greeks and Italians cried "uncle", so that's a joke. And Kruggie is over there preaching the gospel of the open spigot.

Having 27 countries decided the future of the continent is just about the worst possible vehicle for decisive action one can imagine.Summits, really important summits, and even more important summits have produced paralysis.

[GMAX]

I dont think this is the same as Lehman. Lehman had the problem of no one knowing how to value the toxic assets. Spain just has built way too many houses, but it not like the assets can not be prices at some level.

[Steve]

How is a nation a foil to German policy if it uses the same currency? For a nation to be independent in the current day it has to have a balanced budget and a foreign trade balance. Both are easily attainable by honest, hard working people.

[Melinda Romanoff]

narciso-

All the actions taken so far, IMO, have enbiggened the problem.

[jimmyk]

Why exactly is the US focusing its counter barbarian efforts on the barbarians around the MidEast section of the globe?

Steve, has anything happened in the last 20 years that suggests that maybe the barbarians from the MidEast pose a greater threat to the US than those from, say, Madagascar? And in your vast studies of history, do you find that backing down and giving in to international bullies tends to pacify them or embolden them?

[jimmyk]

I dont think this is the same as Lehman. Lehman had the problem of no one knowing how to value the toxic assets. Spain just has built way too many houses, but it not like the assets can not be prices at some level.

To some extent, but in both cases there was/is a lot of denial.

[Melinda Romanoff]

*snick-ort*

[narciso]

if they had problems in one sector, why merge it, into a Goldman/Morgan/ Citi/BOA/ like behemoth,

[narciso]

Me thinks they should have stuck to liontaming,

[Rick Ballard]

Narciso,

Have you noted any articles articulating the fact that the Arabs are now prepared to cover the loss of Persian production should this attack prove more successful than planned? I'm sure the KSA is quite cheerful about fingers pointed at Israel but ignoring the Arab/Persian conflict is rather silly. The Anglo/French coup in Libya removed a wild card and Iraq would be very content to see the Persians (and their client, Syria) beggared. The Russians somewhat less so.

[GMAX]

Steve

Go away, adults are talking here.

[rse]

mel-is anyone making book yet on the intl serfs vs bureaucrats fight?

Are we just the passengers who exist for the sake of the ship? That does seem to be the EU, UN, and US bipartisan view?

LUN is a nice Glenn Reynolds piece on student loan debt.

I saw this several times this year. People are balking at the $50 or $60 K Top 10 or 15 schools for largely paid for with merit scholarships Top 25. The numbers simply do not work unless there's OPM or parental desires for a certain bumper sticker.

[Melinda Romanoff]

narciso-

That's what the "tighter fiscal control" by the technocrats is trying to establish,which in reality is full political control by Brussels, via the crisis.

[Danube of Thought]

Steve, I think you could answer many of your own questions if you would go back and get a GED high school equvalency degree. Study hard.

[NK]

I still believe that there will be a more than one nation New Mark, not because of 'surrender' but out of self-interest. The Dutch, the Danes and obviously the Swiss all have world class companies and hard working citizens. The krone and the franc lack economy of scale to remain stable currencies that serve their national interests. Germans are proving to be more smart and commonsensical than EU, so a currency partnership of those 'like' nations makes rational sense. As opposed to te Euro abortion.

[Melinda Romanoff]

NK-

I have no idea what EU2.0 will look like, but I'm willing to bet that there will be 27 old currencies again before there is another "New" euro.

[Steve]

"... And in your vast studies of history, do you find that backing down and giving in to international bullies tends to pacify them or embolden them? ..."

I think isolationism has a lot going for it. Are the people of Chile really so bad off by sitting out the wars of the last 100 years?

[narciso]

The signals were mized on that score, Rick,
they certainly don't think they can remove that dunce cap on Obama's head,

Meanwhile in search of that mythical increased chocolate ration,

http://www.businessinsider.com/how-to-avoid-the-austerity-trap-but-still-deal-with-the-budget-deficit-2012-5

[NK]

MelR-- You're probably right, when the 'New Mark' is formed, all other countries probably go back to the Lira, Pesata, Drachma et al, but it will be fun watching Hollande and the EUrocrats flailing wildly to 'save' the Euro.

[Steve]

"... Germans are proving to be more smart and commonsensical than EU, so a currency partnership of those 'like' nations makes rational sense. ..."

Exactly. The problem for non welfare states in the US is they have no means of firewalling themselves off from the irresponsible states. I encourage Indiana to form its own currency and invite other states to join in.

[narciso]

You were referring to pieces like this earlier in the year;

http://www.businessweek.com/news/2012-01-25/saudi-oil-can-replace-large-share-of-iran-exports-eiu-says.html

[NK]

OT-- even Bloomberg News can't put a happy face on this. Conf Board consumer confidence collapses. Goodbye Barry: http://www.bloomberg.com/news/2012-05-29/consumer-confidence-in-u-s-fell-in-may-to-four-month-low.html

[Steve]

"... MelR-- You're probably right, when the 'New Mark' is formed, all other countries probably go back to the Lira, Pesata, Drachma et al, ..."

I do not think it will be anywhere near that easy. The monied interests did not get that way by easily giving up what they have. And Obama/Dimon will not want the EU to break up.

[narciso]

Then again, they are kind of splunge on the subject;

http://online.wsj.com/article/SB10001424052702304537904577277301694700334.html

[NK]

There's a very big difference between the EU and the EZ. Granted, the Brussels EuroCrats use the Euro to pay themselves, aggregate power and try to make themselves relevant, once the Euro fragmants and maybe disappears, there will still be an EU, just a 'rightsized' EU with alot fewer EuroCrats.

[narciso]

One of our Own Bankia's 'unexpectedly' didn't work out;

http://www.bloomberg.com/news/2012-05-29/citigroup-kills-panel-overseeing-toxic-asset-division.html

[rse]

NK-it bothers me that the Danes are part of that consortium to push skills devt and qualifications frameworks on India. Beyond Cambridge and the EU Ministry of Labour and Employment, we have Germany, Denmark, Scotland, and England.

"Our livelihood is planning and you must submit and pay us for it" is the battle cry all over the world.

Education is a symptom and a method but is truly a global industrial policy being sought.

[narciso]

Cold Wars are often tricky, as history tells us;

http://online.wsj.com/article/SB10001424052702303513404577353732795520806.html?mod=WSJ_Opinion_LEFTTopOpinion

[Melinda Romanoff]

NK-

I believe there will be an ATTEMPT to still have an EU, but it will fail as well. Until full free trade is allowed, unencumbered of the EU bureaucracy, the political will behind a new anything will collapse under the weight of prior constraints.

Truly free markets can only operate with the freedom to knowledgeably choose.

[Manuel Transmission]

Carp! I see that FB is planning to buy my fav, Opera for $1B. Hope that doesn't turn it into another drone product.

[I R A Darth Aggie]

Why exactly is the US focusing its counter barbarian efforts on the barbarians around the MidEast section of the globe?

Because they want to come here and chop our heads off? the other barbarians you list aren't terribly inclined to do that.

Or did you forget about that? now, if you're ok with praying towards Mecca 5 times a day, treating women as chattel, and killing or oppressing anyone not Muslim, killing the Jew and apostate unconditionally, and living in the 7th century, then maybe those barbarians don't trouble you.

[Rick Ballard]

Narciso,

Those are overly simplistic nuts and bolts pieces which both squinted very hard to miss Iraq's reentry into the supply side of the equation. I haven't seen anything on a realignment of OPEC on the basis of the Libyan coup and diminished Persian capacity and I was wondering if you might have picked up on it. The removal of Libya allows a Saudi/Iraqi joint dominance of OPEC which will be interesting to watch.

[rse]

That is in effect going to reinstitute the License Raj that held India back for so long.

That's who benefits from Qualifications Frameworks. Established companies that can pass on the monitoring and "training" costs. It is stifling for small companies starting out or wishing to expand.

It's true in the US which has been trying to implement something similar since the Clintons. It's called SCANS-the Secretary of Labor's Commission on Acquiring Necessary Skills.

Here's the really scary part. Romney's advisory group on education includes people involved with Workplace 2020 which is the successor report pushing SCANS for all.

The career pathways being pushed in those states and districts embarking on the most aggressive forms of Transformational OBE tie back to these DOL classifications of skills.

Except Georgia has now added one more pathway-Green Energy careers.

[NK]

[email protected]:41-- right again as usual-- I think the EU will shrink back to the framework of the Treaties of Rome ca. 1957. An economic zone with no tariffs, plus no passports (obviously that postdates 1957), but return to nation state sovereignty over environmental and business regulation-- and when I say ALOT fewer Brussels EuroCrats, I mean about 95% fewer. For them, the Euro Experiment is about to end.

[Melinda Romanoff]

rse-

Ireland's the next one to vote on the "Treaty on Stability, Coordination, and GOVERNANCE...." and it's going to get very, very complicated, and soon. Recall that Ireland has a very good view of Iceland, from it's front porch even.

It's being well covered, here at the FT/Alphaville.

[NK]

RickB said: "The removal of Libya allows a Saudi/Iraqi joint dominance of OPEC which will be interesting to watch." I don't know about that-- all of the PUBLIC statements of the House of Saud dismiss the Iraqi government as a stooge of the Mullahs.

[Ignatz]

--I dont think this is the same as Lehman. Lehman had the problem of no one knowing how to value the toxic assets. Spain just has built way too many houses, but it not like the assets can not be prices at some level.--

Once Lehman went belly up and its assets sold off weren't its assets priced at some level pretty quickly?
And isn't the ultimate value of the assets based on the still moribund and failing Spanish economy and RE market just as unknown as Lehman's were at a similar stage?

[narciso]

Well it does seem those that rushed in Libya, after the revolution, for a little Baksheesh,
had the revised copy of the crop report,

They do seem to be going fully Harrison Bergeron, on India, aren't they, they wouldn't try that on China,

[Steve]

"... Because they want to come here and chop our heads off? the other barbarians you list aren't terribly inclined to do that. ..."

so we don't allow muslims to move into the country. or when we retrench as a union of fiscally responsible states take measures to protect the newly consolidated homeland.

[Steve]

If Romney does not have the common sense to avoid getting the US involved in more foreign wars, does he have the sense to run a very divided country?
http://www.reuters.com/article/2012/05/28/us-usa-campaign-romney-idUSBRE84R0PD20120528

"... The other path, Romney said, is "to commit to preserve America as the strongest military in the world, second to none, with no comparable power anywhere in the world."
..."

[narciso]

This suggests a much more equivocal stance, and I found it as a result of Dick Morris's latest,

http://terrorfinance.typepad.com/

[narciso]

Remember that Negrin fellow a few threads back;

http://thespeechatimeforchoosing.wordpress.com/2012/05/28/abc-news-allows-ted-shpak-to-lie-about-sarah-palin-on-memorial-day-again/

[narciso]

Well he was the narrator for 'JFK' so no surprise there;

http://freebeacon.com/inconvenient-truther/

[Rick Ballard]

NK,

The Saudis will work with the current Iraqi oil ministry (still full of Sunnis) and will also work towards reestablishment of Sunni control of Iraq. They will try and make sure that the next Sunni ruler of Iraq is less prone to megalomania than a Hussein or Daffy.

Crippling the Persian ayatollahs remains Job #1 for the Saudis.

[narciso]

What of this, Rick, is it time to break out the chocolate rations;

http://www.reuters.com/article/2012/05/29/us-usa-economy-idUSBRE84M1G420120529?feedType=RSS&feedName=businessNews&utm_source=twitterfeed&utm_medium=twitter&utm_campaign=Feed%3A+reuters%2FbusinessNews+%28Business+News%29

[NK]

[email protected]:38--"Crippling the Persian ayatollahs remains Job #1 for the Saudis."
Completely agree with that. I think Saudi and Gulf money is paying for cyber attacks on the Mullah's nuke project and to kill key Iranian engineers. If it comes to it, the KSA will 'pay' for Israeli bombing nuke facilities by increasing production to offset an Iranian embargo. What do the Iraqis do? Are they Arabs? or Persian/Shia stooges? we'll find out soon.

[Melinda Romanoff]

Gmax-

This is the sort of news I've been looking out for. Somebody's collateral has dropped through the cracks and they've been forced to pay back cash. Any thoughts on who it might be?

[matt]

Actually, Steve, Chile is not nearly as isolationist as one would think. They have had a tumultuous history. The War of the Pacific was an attempted land grab by Peru and Bolivia that blew up in their faces.

However, there is still deep anger between Chile and Argentina because Argentina, as is their wont, blackmailed much of Patagonia from Chile in order to allow critical water materiel to pass through Buenos Aires.

Chile also experienced some degree of civil war in the late 1800's and again in the early 1900's. They have repeatedly almost gone to war with Argentina.

During the Falklands war the Chileans were firmly on the side of the British up to and including allowing remote airfields to be used for refueling for British fighter-bombers flying against Rio Gallegos.

There is still a certain international naivete' but this is rapidly dissipating as Chile has become an economic powerhouse.

[Danube of Thought]

Interesting update on Brett Kimberlin, querying the silence of the media.

[Steve]

"... I think Saudi and Gulf money is paying for cyber attacks on the Mullah's nuke project and to kill key Iranian engineers. ..."

who would they be paying? Where do you think the attackers are based? Can they be counted on to not rat out the payer if they are caught?