Iran Adopts Russian Style CyberWar Tactics

Reports indicate that the Iranian regime has deployed online bots to push back against the people who want it dismantled and have relied on Internet access to organise protests.

Iran, like Russia, reportedly uses cyber trolls and bots to push its propaganda to sway and influence social media trends in its favor.

The Saudi news outlet Al-Arabiya claimed in a recent analysis piece that the Iranian regime has activated “all sleeping and active ‘fake persons’ in various social networks” in response to the widespread social uprisings throughout the Islamic republic.

The outlet notes that the objective of these bots and trolls is to combat information against the regime from members of Iran’s protesting civil society with their stream of pro-government propaganda and to intimidate Iranians who are intent on seeing the regime’s fall.

In January, Breitbart News reported, “Anti-regime Iranians intent on seeing the dismantling of Iran’s Islamic regime have gone to war against pro-regime loyalists over social media, reportedly using bots to saturate Twitter and Instagram with propaganda against those seeking true democracy and freedom.”

However, the Al-Arabiya analysis notes that the Iranian regime’s army of trolls differs from Russian trolls in that the Iranians are far less advanced than their Russian counterparts, including lacking the ability to create websites, pages, and communities on Facebook on a mass scale.

Furthermore, Iranian activists reportedly told Al-Arabiya that Iran may have approximately 5,000 government-affiliated trolls working on its behalf to undermine the second consecutive week of protests that seek to topple Iran’s dictatorial regime.

While social media platforms like Facebook, Twitter, YouTube, and Viber are blocked in Iran, requiring everyday Iranians to use VPNs to access them, the country’s leadership can use these same services without interruption.

In fact, Iran’s Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei sends out tweets from his account on a near-daily basis, as do President Hassan Rouhani and Foreign Minister Javad Zarif.

Al-Arabiya noted that sometimes, “Iranian government-backed trolls cooperate with Iranian government hackers.”

For example, thousands of American and Israeli citizens, mainly military, journalists, and experts based in Washington, DC, were reportedly targeted by these entities.

One such pro-regime bot on Twitter tweeted, “I’ve just arrived and no one is here. Why are you lying?” in response to thousands taking to the streets, throughout various cities in Iran, to protest Iran’s regime.

Ein News

You Might Also Read: 

Iran Turns Off The Internet:

Iran’s Cyber Capabilities:

Iran Wants To Collect All Social Network Data:

 

« Ethical Hacking Is A Great Career Option
The Role Of Blockchain In Helping Organisations Meet GDPR Compliance »

Infosecurity Europe
CyberSecurity Jobsite
Perimeter 81

Directory of Suppliers

Infosecurity Europe, 3-5 June 2025, ExCel London

Infosecurity Europe, 3-5 June 2025, ExCel London

This year, Infosecurity Europe marks 30 years of bringing the global cybersecurity community together to further our joint mission of Building a Safer Cyber World.

CSI Consulting Services

CSI Consulting Services

Get Advice From The Experts: * Training * Penetration Testing * Data Governance * GDPR Compliance. Connecting you to the best in the business.

CYRIN

CYRIN

CYRIN® Cyber Range. Real Tools, Real Attacks, Real Scenarios. See why leading educational institutions and companies in the U.S. have begun to adopt the CYRIN® system.

Practice Labs

Practice Labs

Practice Labs is an IT competency hub, where live-lab environments give access to real equipment for hands-on practice of essential cybersecurity skills.

Clayden Law

Clayden Law

Clayden Law advise global businesses that buy and sell technology products and services. We are experts in information technology, data privacy and cybersecurity law.

Information Security Systems (ISSCOM)

Information Security Systems (ISSCOM)

ISSCOM provide services to help companies implement Information Security Management Systems (ISMS) by providing consultancy and hands-on assistance.

iTrinegy

iTrinegy

iTrinegy is a world leader in Application Risk Management offering solutions to mitigate all networked application deployment risks

Cyber Together

Cyber Together

Cyber Together is dedicated to advancing the cyber security industry by giving businesses access to Israel’s leaders, innovators and great minds in the field of cyber security.

StationX

StationX

StationX is a leading provider of cyber security training, consultancy and services.

Trusted Knight

Trusted Knight

Trusted Knight is a leading provider of security software solutions focused on defeating newly developed malware and crimeware trojans.

NetSecurity

NetSecurity

NetSecurity is a Brazilian company specializing in Information Security. We provide Managed Security Services (MSS), network security solutions and other specialist services.

Reed

Reed

reed.co.uk is a leading job site in the UK, providing a full online service for anyone looking for a new job.

Hut Six Security

Hut Six Security

Train, test and track your Information Security culture through information security awareness training and customised phishing simulation campaigns.

Caveonix

Caveonix

Caveonix’s RiskForesight TM solution is an automated, proactive risk and compliance platform designed for hybrid and multi-cloud.

GLESEC

GLESEC

GLESEC offer a complete range of Cyber Security services from Operations & Intelligence Services to Auditing & Compliance and Simulation and Training.

Internetwork Defense (IND)

Internetwork Defense (IND)

Internetwork Defense is a premier provider of Information Security Training and Business Consulting Services in the Mid-Atlantic region.

Resilience Cyber Insurance Solutions

Resilience Cyber Insurance Solutions

Resilience Cyber Insurance combines insurance expertise with cybersecurity and data talent to deliver clear, effective solutions to protect you for the cyberrisks of today—and tomorrow.

Buchanan Technologies

Buchanan Technologies

Buchanan Technologies is a leading IT consulting and outsourcing services firm. Our methodology transforms everyday technology investments into streamlined, secure and scalable solutions.

vpnMentor

vpnMentor

We started vpnMentor to offer users a really honest, committed and helpful tool when navigating VPNs and web privacy.

Knostic

Knostic

Knostic is an early stage startup developing a risk management and governance platform designed for enterprise large language models (LLM).

NetSfere

NetSfere

NetSfere provides next-generation messaging and mobility solutions to carriers and enterprises globally including its enterprise-grade, secure mobile messaging platform NetSfere Enterprise.