(MENAFN) An Iranian Cyber-security firm, called Chafer, is taking hacking operations further and further in the Middle East by targeting more organizations in the region, according to a report by software company Symantec.

The US-based firm said that the hacking group's "heightened ambitions", as previous reports emphasized the development of its tools and capabilities, proposing that it is targeting telecom and airline companies in the region.

"Iran-based group remains highly active and is moving up the telecoms and transport supply chain to facilitate wide scale surveillance of targets," the software company stated.

This news comes after Chafer's several ambitious attacks during the past few years as the group reportedly targeted organizations in Israel, Jordan, the UAE, Saudi Arabia, and Turkey in 2017.

Sectors attacked included "aircraft services; software and IT services companies serving the air and sea transport sectors; telecoms services; payroll services; engineering consultancies; and document management software," the latest report showed.

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