Iranian fuel stations hit by outage in widespread cyberattack

Iranian authorities blamed a mysterious cyber attack for unprecedented disruption to the country’s fuel distribution network.

The cyberattack crippled fuel stations across Iran, leaving angry motorists stranded in long lines.

No group immediately claimed responsibility for the attack, which rendered useless the government-issued electronic cards that many Iranians use to buy subsidized fuel at the pump.

"The Supreme National Security Council confirmed that there has been a cyber attack against the petrol distribution computer system,” state television said.

It had earlier reported that the interruption was due to “disruptions to the computer system.”

“Details of the attack and its source are under investigation,” state TV added, without giving further details.

The cyberattack bore similarities to another attack months earlier that seemed to directly challenge Iran’s Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei as the country’s economy buckles under American sanctions.

Those economic problems worsen as the US and Iran have yet to jointly re-enter Tehran’s tattered nuclear deal with world powers.