Cyberattacks targeting the U.K. saw a noticeable decline during the recent protests in Iran, according to a senior British defense official.
Clive Higgins, CEO of Leonardo UK, noted that online bot activity promoting Scottish independence from the U.K. decreased as Iranian authorities cracked down violently on civil demonstrations this month.
The pattern suggests that Iran has previously used cyber operations to advance the Scottish independence agenda as a way to undermine the U.K., but these efforts slowed amid the unrest in Iran. “What has been particularly interesting recently, given the social unrest in Iran, is the reduction in social media and chatbot activity related to Scotland, elections, and independence,” Higgins told Defense News.
On Sunday, Scotland’s First Minister, John Swinney, stated he would push for a referendum on independence if the Scottish National Party secures a majority in the upcoming May parliamentary elections. In the 2014 referendum, 55% of voters chose to remain part of the U.K.
A report from the British Parliament’s Intelligence and Security Committee last July identified the U.K. as a significant target for Iranian cyberattacks, ranking just behind the U.S. and Saudi Arabia.
“Iran takes considerable risks when conducting offensive operations, and its intelligence agencies are extremely well-resourced,” said committee chair Kevan Jones at the time. He added that Iran also relies on proxy groups—including criminal networks, militant and terrorist organizations, and private cyber actors—to carry out attacks while minimizing the risk of retaliation.
Leonardo has been increasingly active in the cybersecurity sector. Higgins said, “We are very aware of the growing cyber threat and regularly monitor state actors mobilizing chatbots and social media accounts to disrupt daily life.”
He explained, “We can often trace the actions of state actors by identifying IP addresses and other indicators, which helps us understand where the activity originates, the type of messages being spread, and the methods used to disrupt U.K. society.”
Higgins added, “The primary sources of such activity include North Korea, Iran, Russia, and China. While I’m not claiming all of it is state-sponsored, these are the locations from which the activity is emerging.”
