After American and Israeli agencies warned about Iran's army of hackers planning to attack water, energy, and food infrastructure in the United States, it now appears that the Revolutionary Guards have decided to harass the commander of Lahav 433's cyber unit, Superintendent Dudi Katz, and send invitations to interrogation on suspicion of pedophilia on his behalf.
In recent days, they sent the fake message to hundreds of thousands of Israeli residents, including celebrities and members of the security forces. Each email is accompanied by a file with the Israel Police logo and the Interpol logo, entitled "Invitation for the purpose of a forensic investigation." The message appears to have been translated on Google Translate.
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"My name is DUDI KATZ, head of the Israel Police's National Cybercrime Unit, in the fight against crime and cybercrime, in cooperation with INTERPOL," it read. "After the cyber penetration apprehension, in cooperation with the National Center for the Analysis of Child Pornography Images and the Analysis Service of the International Criminal Police Organization, I contacted you to inform you that you are subject to certain law procedures, including child pornography, pornography websites, internet pornography, pedophile, exhibitionism."
The slurred writing and unclear words get worse as you continue reading: "We invite you to do business by email, at the following address, pay attention to your motive, so that it can be investigated and audited so that the sanctions are approved. This is too short a period of time of 72 hours. After the deadline, we will forward your case to the prosecutor handling your case for a warrant for your arrest. Therefore, you will be registered as the sex offender and your case will also be exposed in the media. Your actions will therefore be disseminated to the general public in order to prevent a repeat of the criminal act. thus dissuading other candidates from these methods. Now you're being tested."
Superintendent Katz did not know about the letter until police officers, one of whom serves in Lahav 433, came to him and asked him to compromise it. "The goal is to sow panic among the public," warns Superintendent Katz. "At first glance, the letter looks authentic. A police officer who received the email deals with sexual offenses against minors, and she didn't understand why she was getting a summons from me. The officer contacted me and explained that she handles pedophilic materials in her capacity. I made it clear to her that it was a fake.
Commander of Lahav 433's Cyber Unit, Superintendent Dudi Katz, Photo: Police Spokesperson's Office
"And she's not the only one. I know that the email reached a well-known actress, several lawyers, a mayor from the north and two police officers with the rank of brigadier general, one of them retired. Many citizens called the police to find out how their names were linked to a pedophilia case. The Iranians wanted to create panic. I make it clear to the public that an official police email will always end with gov.il letters, and will not belong to Gmail."
"Trying to create panic"
Do you know how they got your details?
"I guess it's because the unit is always high-profile, and it's easy to find my name. When I saw the message, I noticed that under the state emblem it says 'Etat d'Israel,' which is French for 'State of Israel.' Before this position, I was an attaché in France, and it seems that they found an official paper from that period online. There's nothing to worry about, they didn't hack into any account, they just Googled."
What is being done to prevent the email from reaching hundreds of thousands more citizens?
"We're working with Google to block this email inbox, and we're also trying to trace its source. We have no doubt that this is Iran, because the many defense mechanisms that block us show that this is not a person who covets Tsun."
So will the cyber unit investigate the fake email sent on behalf of the unit commander?
"This is not a criminal incident and there is no demand for ransom, so those who will deal with it are the security forces. In any case, it is important to warn the public not to open suspicious emails."
Were you disappointed to be impersonated?
"Absolutely not. It's the game in these worlds, and your opponent targets you with his tools. Since the beginning of the war, we have seen a significant increase in enemy attempts to create panic among the public."
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