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The Iran-linked hacker group "Handala" claims to have hacked drones belonging to the U.S. Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI). They are threatening to carry out an attack on the World Cup. The U.S. surveillance organization SITE Intelligence Group, which monitors jihadist groups, issued the alarming warning on Friday.
Handala says it has had access to all footage of suspects recorded by FBI drones for months. These are FPV (first-person view) drones capable of facial recognition and reading license plates. The FBI uses these drones in the fight against terrorism and around World Cup stadiums to detect unauthorized aircraft.
In a statement published by SITE, Handala said: “Go ahead and improve the security of your World Cup; we don’t like some of the teams. Don’t forget, the FPVs are everywhere. You never know when one of them might be on your team’s bus.”
Although Handala posted photos and video footage online that were supposedly taken from the hacked drones, SITE openly disputes the hacking. According to the intelligence group, the images actually come from a software platform and are promotional images for technology used by an American police department, specifically for assessing tornado damage.
Earlier, in March, Handala claimed to have hacked FBI Director Kash Patel’s email account and posted personal photos online. The U.S. Department of State is offering up to $10 million for information leading to the identification of members of the group.
The FBI has banned drone flights over World Cup stadiums in the U.S. and over all fan based events. The Department of Justice previously warned of cyberattacks by Iranians following the U.S.-Israeli airstrikes on Tehran in February.
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