US, Israeli Cyber Agencies ‘In Very Close Contact’ After Hamas Attacks

The US Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency (CISA) has teamed with the Israeli National Cyber Directorate in response to last week’s Hamas attacks.

The partnership aims to counter “low-level cyber attacks” involving denial of service and website defacement activities, some of which have been recorded after air strikes on Gaza and claimed by several hacker groups.

“The attacks obviously were horrific, but we have been lucky in the cyber realm there has not been significant cyber attacks as of right now,” CISA Executive Director Brandon Wales explained during an event held by The Washington Post.

“We are in very close contact with our counterparts there in the Israeli National Cyber Directorate… to make sure that whatever information we have that can help them protect their systems, that’s being shared, and they’re giving us Insight in terms of what they’re seeing.”

Preparing for Larger Cyberattacks

Wales added the collaboration will also be on the “lookout” to prevent larger digital assaults that could be facilitated by “Hamas or its allies to disrupt Israeli critical infrastructure.”

“Israel has a very sophisticated cyber security operation both in their government and in their private sector and… we have a lot of confidence in their capabilities, but this is going to be an extremely challenging time for Israel and we’re providing whatever support we can to protect them.”

No Significant Campaign Yet

Meanwhile, US National Security Agency Cybersecurity Director Rob Joyce assured there have been no significant cyber campaigns confirmed that target Israel since the country formally declared war.

“We’re not yet seeing real [nation] state malicious actors,” Joyce said at the Cipher Brief Threat Conference in Sea Island, Georgia.

The update followed reports on cyberterrorists diverting their focus from Moscow’s invasion of Ukraine to the Israel-Hamas conflict.