By Danny Palmer
Publication Date: 2026-03-02 15:45:00
Iran will “absolutely” respond to the US and Israeli air strikes with cyber-attacks against a wide range of targets in the Middle East and beyond, Google’s chief of cyber threat intelligence has warned.
John Hultquist, chief analyst of Google Threat Intelligence Group (GTIG), made the comments at an event hosted by the Royal United Services Institute (RUSI) defense think tank in London.
The discussion was intended to focus on the threat of Russian cyber sabotage in Europe, but sudden escalation of the conflict in the Middle East saw much of the conversation focus around Iran and Iranian cyber capabilities.
Iran has long been classed as capable nation-state actor in cyberspace with a history of numerous cyber espionage and other malicious hacking campaigns against the West.
Since the conflict started, Iran has retaliated with missile strikes against several of its neighbors – including Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) members Qatar, Bahrain, Jordan, the United Arab…
