Israel’s top cyber agency said Monday that hostile online activity linked to Iran has climbed sharply since the U.S.-Israel campaign against Iran began this year, pointing to a steep year-over-year jump in detected incidents.

Surge In Malicious Cyber Events

In an interview with a German outlet, Yossi Karadi, head of Israel’s National Cyber Directorate, reported that Israeli authorities counted about 1,600 malicious cyber events in June 2025 during Israeli military activity involving Iran, according to a Reuters report.

He said the tally for June 2026 rose to roughly 4,800.

‘No Ceasefire In Cyberspace’

Karadi described some of the attackers as highly capable, saying, "Some groups are very skilled." He added, "We can handle them, but we have to take them seriously. Unlike in the kinetic realm, there’s no ceasefire in cyberspace."

The attempted intrusions have targeted a wide range of victims, from essential services and major institutions to smaller businesses and individual users, according to the report. Karadi said professional-services firms such as law offices and accounting shops were among the smaller organizations that came under pressure.

He said Israel has, to date, prevented successful hits on key infrastructure systems, adding, "So far — and hopefully it stays that way — we’ve managed to fend off attacks on critical infrastructure." Karadi also said less-protected organizations sometimes saw their systems erased after being breached, without identifying specific companies.

Iran-US Ceasefire Holds Despite Attacks

Iran and the U.S. have agreed to halt hostilities after the two countries exchanged fire in the Gulf over the last few days. The recent hostilities began after an Iranian projectile hit a cargo vessel in the Strait of Hormuz.

Disclaimer: This content was partially produced with the help of AI tools and was reviewed and published by Benzinga editors.

Photo courtesy: Barks on Shutterstock.com