Dozens of Israeli websites said to come under cyberattack

The National Cyber Directorate says it has received reports of dozens of Israeli websites coming under cyberattack.

The cybersecurity service says the situation is being dealt with, Hebrew media reports.

Videos and screenshots shared on social media show the phrase “Be ready for a big surprise” in Hebrew and English. The video appears to show explosions in Tel Aviv and a battered and bloodied Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu swimming away from a burning city.

There was no official indication on who is thought to be behind the attacks although the images did feature Iranian flags and symbols.

"תתכוננו להפתעה גדולה": זה הסרטון שהושתל בעמודי הבית של האתרים שנפרצו במתקפת הסייבר ממדינות מוסלמיות @Shira_HN pic.twitter.com/0ANjMizCvi

— כאן חדשות (@kann_news) May 21, 2020

It is thought the hack was facilitated by a vulnerability in a plug-in on the WordPress platform, Haaretz reports.

The local authorities of Mitzpe Ramon and Ramat Hasharon are among those attacked in the hack, as is the Cofix chain of coffee shops and convenience stores, United Hatzalah emergency responders, and the personal website of Meretz MK Nitzan Horowitz, Ynet reports.

Israel’s security firms and agencies have been preparing for a potential Iranian or Iran-linked cyberattack in response to an attack blamed on the Jewish state that was said to have crippled computer systems at a strategic port in the south of the Islamic Republic.

The attack was apparently in response to an alleged Iranian attempt to hack into Israel’s water infrastructure system.