New dimensions of banking system hacking

Partner or friend?

In August, IRLeaks hacker group penetrated 11 Iranian banks.  The reason for this intrusion was the security hole in "Tousan" company, which provided banking services to these banks.  Millions of customer information, cards and transactions were compromised.  Rumors suggest that a ransom was paid to the hackers, while the central bank denied the hack.  These events happened at the same time as the cabinet changes and there is a possibility of concealment.

While the disaster of hacking banking systems has turned into a serious security crisis, the role of people like Seyyed Waliullah Fatemi Ardakani and his connections with banks and companies providing banking services, including "Toussan", can be considered.

Fatemi Ardakani was not only the founder and main shareholder and senior figure in Tosun company, but also the head of Abdolnaser Hemmati's election campaign in the 1400 presidential election.  This close relationship between Fatemi and Hemmati may be the reason for Hemmati's inattention and lack of follow-up on the issue of cyber security of banks as the Minister of Economy.

Currently, his brother Seyed Ruholah Fatemi Ardakani is the vice chairman of Tosun company.

Fatemi Ardakani, who has been active in various banking sectors for years, has a close relationship with Hemti.  During the management of Hemmati, he was a member of the board of directors of Bank Melli since 2012, and then the vice president of information technology of this bank, who played an important role in the management of the holding of information technology of Bank Melli.  At the same time, Toussaint became one of the largest software service providers for banks in the country.

The important point is that Tosun, as a company that cooperates with big banks such as National Bank, Sina Bank and many others, has been introduced as the main source of hackers' influence.  Reports indicate that hackers penetrated banking systems through a software hole in Tucson's systems, which may explain Hemmati's lack of sensitivity to this issue, considering Fatemi and Hemmati's relationship with the company.

Considering the old connections between Hemmati and Fatemi and Fatemi's key role in the electronic banking industry, the question arises whether the personal and political relationships of these two people are the reason for the lack of quick response and necessary follow-up against this crisis?  The question of why a banking disaster of this magnitude has not been followed up to this day, may have an answer in the behind-the-scenes communication network.

Abdullah Abdi