U.S. Had Prepared Massive Cyber-Attack Plans Against Iran In The Event That The Nuclear Talks Failed

Iran's Natanz nuclear facility. Reuters

New York Times: U.S. Had Cyberattack Plan if Iran Nuclear Dispute Led to Conflict

BERLIN — In the early years of the Obama administration, the United States developed an elaborate plan for a cyberattack on Iran in case the diplomatic effort to limit its nuclear program failed and led to a military conflict, according to a coming documentary film and interviews with military and intelligence officials involved in the effort.

The plan, code-named Nitro Zeus, was devised to disable Iran’s air defenses, communications systems and crucial parts of its power grid, and was shelved, at least for the foreseeable future, after the nuclear deal struck between Iran and six other nations last summer was fulfilled.

Nitro Zeus was part of an effort to assure President Obama that he had alternatives, short of a full-scale war, if Iran lashed out at the United States or its allies in the region. At its height, officials say, the planning for Nitro Zeus involved thousands of American military and intelligence personnel, spending tens of millions of dollars and placing electronic implants in Iranian computer networks to “prepare the battlefield,” in the parlance of the Pentagon.

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More News On Reports That The U.S. Had Cyber Attack Plans Against Iran If The nuclear Talks Had Failed

U.S. planned major cyber attack on Iran if diplomacy failed: NYT -- Reuters
Massive US-planned cyberattack against Iran went well beyond Stuxnet -- Ars Technica
US developed detailed cyberattack plan for Iran -- The Hill
US reportedly had cyberattack plan for Iran if nuclear talks failed -- CNet
The US spent millions planning an elaborate cyberattack on Iran -- The Verge
US Planned Cyberattack on Iran if Talks to Limit Nuclear Program Failed -- Sputnik