Stuxnet cyber worm can nix Iran’s nuke program with just a rogue memory stick

SYDNEY - Cyber security experts have warned that Iran’s nuclear program might be the possible target of a destructive cyber worm, which is powerful enough to bring down whole industrial installations.

Experts said that ‘Stuxnet’ has been a dangerous cyber worm since being first identified in June.

They claim that the worm has the capability to take over a computing system via nothing more than a rogue memory stick, and its potential targets include Iran’s Bushehr nuclear plant.

“Until a few days ago, people did not believe a directed attack like this was possible,” News.com.au quoted Ralph Langner, a German cyber security researcher, as saying.

“What Stuxnet represents is a future in which people with the funds will be able to buy an attack like this on the black market. This is now a valid concern,” he added.

An analysis produced by Microsoft in July had also pinpointed Iran as the epicentre of the global infection map.

Bushehr nuclear plant was initially scheduled to start-up in August, but was delayed for unknown reasons.

“If Bushehr wasn’t the target, and it starts up in a few months, well, I was wrong - but somewhere out there, Stuxnet has found its target. We can be fairly certain of that,” Langner added.

The worm has so far infected over 45,000 industrial networks throughout the world. (ANI)