US charges Iranian hackers over intellectual-property theft valued at billions of dollars

The United States has charged 17 Iranians allegedly associated with a hacking-for-hire company called Mabna Institute and years-long operations against U.S. organizations. According to the U.S. Department of Justice, academic research, intellectual property, emails, and other proprietary information were stolen. The operation allegedly began around 2013 and targeted the accounts of more than 100,000 professors worldwide; approximately 8,000 accounts were compromised. The hackers reportedly stole 31.5 terabytes of academic data valued at approximately $3.4 billion. The activity affected 178 universities, at least 53 private firms, two NGOs, and at least 10 U.S. state agencies. All defendants are presumed innocent until proven guilty in court.