Iran oil industry fires spark hacking fears

A series of fires at Iranian petrochemical plants and facilities have raised suspicions about potential hacking, as authorities say “viruses had contaminated” equipment at several of the affected complexes.

Iran officially insists the six known blazes over the span of three months aren’t the result of a cyberattack. But acknowledgment that supposedly protected facilities are infected does point to the possibility of a concerted effort to target Iranian infrastructure.

Among the worst of the fires was a massive, days-long inferno in July at the Bou Ali Sina Petrochemical Complex in Iran’s southwestern province of Khuzestan. Insurance officials later estimated the damage at some $67 million. A preliminary investigation said the blaze was caused by a leak of paraxylene, a flammable hydrocarbon. It did not elaborate.

— AP