Iranian hackers take credit for massive cyber attack on US medical equipment firm

Stryker's global IT systems were reportedly targeted by an Iranian-linked hacker group on Wednesday.

The multinational firm makes a variety of hospital equipment, including defibrillators to ambulance cots, and serves over 150 million patients. 

The attack has reportedly affected the company's operations stretching across Europe, Asia, and the US. 

"We are experiencing a severe, global disruption impacting all Stryker laptops and systems that connect to our network,"  Stryker said in a message to staff based in Cork, Ireland.

In an update sent to workers in Asia, the firm wrote: "At this time, the root cause has not yet been identified. We are actively engaged with Microsoft and treating this a critical, enterprise-wide incident."

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In a message to customers, the company said on its website: “Stryker is experiencing a global network disruption to our Microsoft environment as a result of a cyber attack. We have no indication of ransomware or malware and believe the incident is contained. 

“Our teams are working rapidly to understand the impact of the attack on our systems.

“Stryker has business continuity measures in place to continue to support our customers and partners. We are committed to transparency and will keep stakeholders informed as we know more.”

Iranian-linked hacking group Handala has since taken credit for the attack. 

It said the move was a direct retaliation “for the brutal attack on the Minab school and in response to ongoing cyber assaults against the infrastructure of the Axis of Resistance.”

The strike on the Iranian school left at least 150 dead. Evidence in investigations undertaken independently by the various news organisations say US-Israeli drones were responsible. 

The school was also adjacent to an Iranian military base the US targeted from the air.

Satellite imagery analysis of the strikes and burn marks suggest the school was hit more than once. 

Handala has previously claimed a number of high-profile cyber attacks, mainly in Israel.

Its latest hack comes just a day after the FBI warned American companies and government agencies to be vigilant of retaliatory cyber attacks in retaliation to the US-Israel strikes on Iran.

In one bulletin sent to the Department for Homeland Security, the FBI wrote that “two top Iranian religious leaders issued separate Farsi-language fatwas calling on Muslims worldwide to take revenge for the killing” of Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei.

“The fatwas, Iranian government rhetoric, and online messaging from regime supporters promoting retaliation against the US heightens the threat from violent extremists who support the Iranian regime,” the bulletin warned.