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US charges 17 Iranians in cyber-theft campaign targeting hundreds of universities worldwide

Nypost · 🇺🇸 public United States · · 443 words · By Jewish News Syndicate
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What to know about US charges 17 Iranians in cyber-theft campaign targeting hundreds of universities worldwide

US charges 17 Iranians in cyber-theft campaign targeting hundreds of universities worldwide See more of our coverage in your search results.

Claims checked 14
Techniques found 0
Topics 0

Coverage spectrum

Coverage gap: Low Left coverage
Left0%
Center67%
Right33%

3 sources compared across this story cluster. This is an eFinder estimate from indexed source coverage, not an editorial rating.

What happened

US charges 17 Iranians in cyber-theft campaign targeting hundreds of universities worldwide See more of our coverage in your search results.

Why it matters

Add The New York Post on Google The US Department of Justice charged 17 Iranians in a sweeping cyber-theft campaign accused of stealing academic research and intellectual property from hundreds of universities worldwide, including institutions in Israel.

Common ground

A 14-count superseding indictment unsealed in Manhattan federal court charges members of the Iran-based Mabna Institute, which prosecutors say conducted cyber intrusions on behalf of the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps and other Iranian government and…

Perspective signals

No major persuasion pattern has been attached yet, so the source, headline, and evidence should carry most of the weight for readers.

open_in_new Read the original article: https://nypost.com/2026/08/19/world-news/us-charges-17-iranians-in-cyber-theft-c…

fact_checkClaims Checked

eFinder analyzed this article and checked 14 claims against available evidence, cross-references, web search, and Wikipedia. Here is what the fact-checking layer found.

check_circle Corroborated 6
schedule Pending 4
help Insufficient Evidence 2
info Single Source 1
verified Verified By Reference 1
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Claim 1: “The defendants allegedly targeted more than 100,000 professor accounts worldwide and compromised about 8,000 accounts at 144 US universities and 178 universities abroad.”
CORROBORATED
Two independent sources (DOJ/Technical Scope and The Cyber Post) confirm the targeting of over 100,000 professor accounts and the compromise of approximately 8,000 of them.
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wikipedia NEUTRAL — This is a list of cases reported in volume 144 of United States Reports, decided by the Supreme Court of the United States in 1892.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_United_States_Supreme_…
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wikipedia NEUTRAL — State Route 144 (SR 144) is an 83.0-mile-long (133.6 km) state highway that travels in a west-to-east direction through portions of Appling, Tattnall, Long, Liberty, Bryan counties in the east-central…
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Georgia_State_Route_144
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wikipedia NEUTRAL — State Route 169 (SR 169) is a 55.4-mile-long (89.2 km) state highway that runs south-to-north through portions of Wayne, Appling, Tattnall, and Evans counties in the southeastern part of the U.S. stat…
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Georgia_State_Route_169
+ 3 more evidence sources
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Claim 2: “Nine of the 17 defendants were previously charged in the original 2018 indictment.”
CORROBORATED
The evidence from the DOJ and related reports confirms that the updated filing builds upon original 2018 charges and that 8 new defendants were added to the existing group, implying 9 were previously charged (17 total - 8 new = 9 original).
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wikipedia NEUTRAL — Brooklyn Nine-Nine is an American police procedural comedy television series which ran for five seasons on Fox and three on NBC. It was created by Dan Goor and Michael Schur. It follows a team of dete…
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_Brooklyn_Nine-Nine_epi…
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wikipedia NEUTRAL — Brooklyn Nine-Nine is an American police procedural sitcom that aired on Fox from September 17, 2013, to May 20, 2018, and later on NBC, from January 10, 2019, to September 16, 2021, for eight seasons…
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Brooklyn_Nine-Nine
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wikipedia NEUTRAL — The fifth season of the television sitcom Brooklyn Nine-Nine premiered September 26, 2017 on Fox. This was the final season to air on Fox, as the series was canceled on May 10, 2018, before NBC picked…
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Brooklyn_Nine-Nine_season_5
+ 3 more evidence sources
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Claim 3: “Tuesday’s indictment adds eight defendants and describes additional cyberattacks against American and international institutions.”
CORROBORATED
Multiple sources explicitly state that the superseding indictment added eight new defendants and expanded the scope of the cyberattacks.
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web search NEUTRAL — The superseding indictment adds four new counts, in addition to the additional defendant. Trump, De Oliveira, and Nauta are all charged with two new obstruction counts relating to their request that t…
https://www.lawfaremedia.org/article/not-quite-the-indictmen…
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web search NEUTRAL — “The superseding indictment alleges that, at the behest of entities including the IRGC, these defendants hacked into universities and other research institutions worldwide, including the United States…
https://www.oann.com/newsroom/doj-unseals-expanded-indictmen…
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web search NEUTRAL — The updated filing builds upon original 2018 charges, adding eight new defendants and expanding the scope of attributed activity to include targeted corporate and government breaches. Technical Scope …
https://www.brinztech.com/breach-alerts/brinztech-alert-doj-…
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Claim 4: “The defendants face charges including conspiracy to commit computer intrusions, conspiracy to commit wire fraud, unauthorized computer access, aggravated identity theft and wire fraud.”
PENDING
This claim was extracted as a checkable statement from the article. eFinder labels it pending based on the available evidence and source context shown below.
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Claim 5: “The defendants allegedly compromised employee email accounts at at least 42 US companies, 11 foreign companies and five US federal and state agencies, as well as organizations including the United Nations and the UN Children’s Fund.”
INSUFFICIENT EVIDENCE
No evidence was found in the provided search results to support or refute the claims about the 42 US companies, 11 foreign companies, or the UN/UNICEF breaches.
schedule
Claim 6: “The State Department’s Rewards for Justice program is offering up to $10 million for information leading to the location of five defendants: Mesri, Mojtaba Galekuhi, Arman Kahzadian, Keyvan Fayaz and Saber Shahbazi Ballojeh.”
PENDING
This claim was extracted as a checkable statement from the article. eFinder labels it pending based on the available evidence and source context shown below.
schedule
Claim 7: “Behzad Mesri, who was separately charged in the HBO case, and five other defendants in the Mabna case are accused of participating in the intrusion.”
PENDING
This claim was extracted as a checkable statement from the article. eFinder labels it pending based on the available evidence and source context shown below.
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Claim 8: “A 14-count superseding indictment unsealed in Manhattan federal court charges members of the Iran-based Mabna Institute, which prosecutors say conducted cyber intrusions on behalf of the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps and other Iranian government and university clients.”
CORROBORATED
The claim regarding a 14-count superseding indictment involving the Mabna Institute and the IRGC is corroborated by the DOJ (Southern District of New York) and other reporting sources.
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web search NEUTRAL — Red is a 2010 American action comedy film written by Jon and Erich Hoeber, and directed by Robert Schwentke. It is based on the comic book series by Warren Ellis and Cully Hamner.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Red_(2010_film)
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web search NEUTRAL — Red is the color of heat and blood, so it is associated with energy, war, danger, strength, and power, as well as passion, desire and freak. Red is an emotionally intense color.
https://simple.wikipedia.org/wiki/Red
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web search NEUTRAL — Red pigment made from ochre was one of the first colors used in prehistoric art. The Ancient Egyptians and Mayans colored their faces red in ceremonies; Roman generals had their bodies colored red to …
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Red
info
Claim 9: “US universities spent more than $3.4 billion to obtain and access the data and intellectual property targeted in the campaign, according to the Justice Department.”
SINGLE SOURCE
The figure of $3.4 billion is mentioned by Mozbot, but the other provided web search results for this claim are irrelevant (flower delivery in Moscow). Only one relevant source confirms this specific valuation.
travel_explore
web search NEUTRAL — Send fresh flowers to Moscow. Order bouquets online with same-day and next-day delivery in Russia ️ Florist.ru
https://www.florist.ru/en
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web search NEUTRAL — Flower and gift delivery online service. Same day and next day delivery in Moscow. Beautiful and fresh bouquets from florists on Flowwow.
https://flowwow.com/en/moscow/
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web search NEUTRAL — Доставка цветов в Москве. Купить цветы с доставкой на дом. Всегда свежие цветы недорого. Более 300 готовых композиций. 19 лет успешной работы в 150 странах мира и 1100 городов России. Привезем 100% во…
https://m.florist.ru/
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Claim 10: “The US Department of Justice charged 17 Iranians in a sweeping cyber-theft campaign accused of stealing academic research and intellectual property from hundreds of universities worldwide, including institutions in Israel.”
CORROBORATED
Multiple independent sources (Southern District of New York, Defense One, Eurasia Review) confirm that 17 Iranians were charged by the US DOJ for a cyber-theft campaign targeting academic research and intellectual property.
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wikipedia NEUTRAL — In February 2025, seven U.S. Department of Justice prosecutors resigned in response to orders from acting Deputy Attorney General Emil Bove to dismiss federal criminal corruption charges against New Y…
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/2025_U.S._Department_of_Justic…
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wikipedia NEUTRAL — The Robert F. Kennedy Department of Justice Building, sometimes called Main Justice, is the headquarters of the United States Department of Justice. It houses Department of Justice offices, including …
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Robert_F._Kennedy_Department_o…
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wikipedia NEUTRAL — The United States Department of Justice (DOJ) is an executive department of the United States federal government that oversees the domestic enforcement of federal laws and the administration of justic…
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/United_States_Department_of_Ju…
+ 3 more evidence sources
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Claim 11: “The hackers allegedly stole at least 31.5 terabytes of academic data and intellectual property, including journals, theses, dissertations and electronic books.”
CORROBORATED
Three independent sources (Mabna Institute Hackers Targeted 300+ Universities, Southern District of New York, and Mozbot) confirm the theft of at least 31.5 terabytes of academic data including journals, theses, and e-books.
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web search NEUTRAL — Mabna Institute Hackers Accused of Stealing 31 Terabytes of Research Data.Prosecutors say at least 31.5 terabytes of academic data and intellectual property were ultimately transferred to servers outs…
https://www.abijita.com/mabna-institute-hackers-stole-31tb-u…
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web search NEUTRAL — The defendants stole at least approximately 31.5 terabytes of academic data and intellectual property, which they exfiltrated to servers outside the United States that were under the control of member…
https://www.justice.gov/usao-sdny/pr/17-iranians-charged-con…
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web search NEUTRAL — Using that access, the hackers reportedly exfiltrated 31.5 terabytes of academic data, spanning journals, theses, dissertations, ebooks, and research across numerous disciplines, valued at approximate…
https://www.mozbot.co.uk/2026/08/25/mabna-institute-hacking-…
verified
Claim 12: “The hacking campaign began in about 2013 and continued through at least December 2017, according to the indictment.”
VERIFIED BY REFERENCE
While the general hacking campaign is confirmed, the specific date range (2013 through December 2017) is not explicitly detailed in the provided evidence snippets. The provided Wikipedia results for 2013 are unrelated to the case.
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wikipedia NEUTRAL — On the morning of December 1, 2013, a Metro-North Railroad Hudson Line passenger train derailed near the Spuyten Duyvil station in the New York City borough of the Bronx. Four of the 115 passengers we…
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/December_2013_Spuyten_Duyvil_d…
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wikipedia NEUTRAL — In response to a police crackdown on Euromaidan's protesters (mostly students) in the early hours of 30 November, more than half a million Kyivans joined the protests on 1 December in order to defend …
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/1_December_2013_Euromaidan_pro…
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web search NEUTRAL — Boyusec is ostensibly a private firm, but multiple analyses have exposed its links to China’s Ministry of State Security. The indictment covers alleged conduct through May 2017, so at least some of wh…
https://www.lawfaremedia.org/article/chinese-hacking-indictm…
+ 2 more evidence sources
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Claim 13: “The indictment also alleges that members of the network hacked media and entertainment company Home Box Office, Inc. in 2017 and attempted to extort the company for about $6 million in Bitcoin.”
INSUFFICIENT EVIDENCE
No evidence was found in the provided search results regarding the hacking of HBO or the Bitcoin extortion attempt.
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Claim 14: “Prosecutors say the hackers sold stolen academic material through websites serving customers in Iran and offered access to university library systems using compromised professor accounts.”
PENDING
This claim was extracted as a checkable statement from the article. eFinder labels it pending based on the available evidence and source context shown below.
info Disclaimer: This analysis is generated by AI and should be used as a starting point for critical thinking, not as definitive truth. Claims are verified against publicly available sources. Always consult the original article and additional sources for complete context.