IDF forms unit to deter cyber attacks Jerusalem – Sona Aldeak Israeli army radio reported that the Saudi hackers, who launched cyber attacks on the Israeli stock exchange, banks, and companies, have  threatened of more websites incursions if the Israeli government does not apologize for its crimes against the Palestinian people in the Gaza Strip. The threat prompted the Israeli army to form a unit comprised of technical experts to deter these attacks.
The hackers have recently attacked the websites of the Tel Aviv stock exchange and the Israeli national airlines El Al.
Israeli Information Minister Yuli Edelstein considered the Saudi hackers’ attacks and the internet war against Israel a “serious threat to Israel's security that could develop into an existential danger.”
Edelstein called on the Israeli government to counteract the attacks by “all measures at its disposal to prevent these virtual dangers from turning into real threats and to prevent with all its force attacks against it and its institutions,” warning against the possible expansion of the attacks, which could develop from stealing credit cards and incursion of websites to having access to confidential security information and affecting Israel’s infrastructure.
Israeli hacker, calling himself ‘Hannibal’, revealed that he sent warning messages to around 30 thousand emails and Facebook accounts belonging to citizens from different Arab countries, in an attempt to counteract the cyber attacks on Israeli websites.
Israeli army radio cited ‘Hannibal’ saying that Israel should not be concerned, as he – Hannibal – is “the most professional” worldwide. The Israeli hacker claimed that he has access to information on 30 million personalities in the Arab world, including high-level figures, which he threatens to publish information on them upon the request of the political powers to do so.
It is noted that anti-cyber terrorism authority in Israel is still in its early stages and has not yet begun its work. The authority’s task is to internationally coordinate with various organizations concerned with the issue of cyber attacks, as opposed to protecting the websites on its own.