A persona dubbed Sara Shokouhi recycled photos of a Russian psychologist and tarot card reader to pose as a Middle East-focused researcher

The group known as TA453 has added "outlier" attacks to its portfolio over the past two years, seemingly in concert with Iranian hardliners.

Security researchers linked the program to the so-called Charming Kitty Iranian hacker group known to carry out intelligence operations.

The previously unreported campaigns represent one of several ongoing nation-state attempts to hack journalists, the researchers said.

The government-linked hacking activity is both an intel-gathering effort as well as a money maker, researchers say.

The targets include local governments and the health care sector.

Hacking is still central to the high-stakes spying game between Iran, Israel and the U.S.

The group known as Charming Kitten used malicious links to capture login credentials and steal data, CERTFA said.

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The server appears to belong to a hacking outfit that IBM calls ITG18, and which overlaps with groups known as Charming Kitten and Phosphorous.