The US State Department just placed a $10 million reward on information leading to the identification or location of Amir Yaryab, a senior official in Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps who allegedly oversees the cyber units responsible for attacking American critical infrastructure. The bounty, issued through the Rewards for Justice program, makes Yaryab one of the most wanted cyber operatives on Washington’s radar.
Yaryab leads the IRGC Cyber-Electronic Command’s (IRGC-CEC) Cyber Operations Command, which sits at the top of a network of state-directed hacking groups that have been linked to attacks on defense systems, energy grids, financial networks, and telecommunications across the US, Europe, and the Middle East.
Who is Amir Yaryab
The groups under Yaryab’s umbrella read like a roster of Washington’s least favorite threat actors. His command encompasses operations run by Shahid Hemmat and Shahid Shushtari, two units within the IRGC-CEC structure. He also oversees affiliated cyber entities including CyberAv3ngers and Dadeh Afzar Arman (DAA), both of which have been implicated in numerous cyber operations targeting critical sectors.
CyberAv3ngers, in particular, has drawn significant attention from US cybersecurity agencies. The group’s operations have targeted industrial control systems and critical infrastructure.
