Iranian regime-linked hackers hijack LA freeway billboard to threaten exiles
A digital traffic sign on the 405 freeway near Westwood was compromised to display a website that threatens Iranian dissidents living in Los Angeles.
On Sept. 15 a digital billboard on the 405 Freeway near Persian Square in Westwood showed the URL goorkan.info, a site that advertises a campaign to locate and punish perceived enemies of Iran. Caltrans said the message was unauthorized and is investigating how the hack occurred. The website, associated with the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps, lists personal data of Iranian dissidents, prompting alarm among the city’s large Iranian-American population.
Payam Shiravi, a 59-year-old real-estate broker, first spotted the sign and found acquaintances named on the site; activist Emel Karsaz also discovered her photo and details, filing an FBI report. The FBI had earlier warned that Iranian state cyber actors were targeting dissidents worldwide, and the incident follows recent cyber attacks on LA Metro and California water systems attributed to Iran-linked hackers.
Why it matters
The hack shows how foreign adversaries can use public infrastructure to intimidate diaspora communities on U.S. soil.
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